#((as in trying to bring multiverse together to reconnect with his wife))

[primordyalsoul]

kicking my feet thinking about spideyrei

[lastbluetardis]

Home for the Holidays (1/2)

This is part one of my gift to @timeladyelpia for the @dwsecretsanta gift exchange! Apologies for the delay; I hope you enjoy this! Your info said you enjoy reunions and established relationships, so that’s what this is :)

Ten x Rose, 4400 words, teen

Also tagging @doctorroseprompts 

Summary: Despite being locked away in different universes, the Doctor and Rose have managed to stay connected through their marriage bond, celebrating holidays and special events even through the impenetrable distance. After celebrating three Christmases apart, fate brings them together once more just in time for the holidays.

Note: If anybody remembers this little ficlet (If Only in My Dreams) I wrote for last year’s Ficmas, I borrowed from that idea and wrote the reunion. However, you do NOT need to have read that in order to understand this.

AO3

The holidays were one of the hardest times for the Doctor. Though he didn’t naturally celebrate—at least not any Earth or human holiday—Rose had. Oh, he would join in the festivities with his past companions, wishing them Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Festivus, or whatever holiday they in particular celebrated, but he was always on the outside looking in.

But all of that had changed when he’d met Rose, when he regenerated into his current body and left her and the Earth to fend for themselves during a Sycorax invasion while he was—helpfully—in a regenerative coma. All on Christmas Day.

When it all had blown over—blown up, more like it, thanks to Harriet Jones, former Prime Minister—he had strangely been invited to Christmas dinner at the Tylers’. Even more strangely, he’d said yes. After he changed, of course. He couldn’t very well have Christmas dinner in his borrowed jimjams. No, he’d gone back to his TARDIS and found himself a new outfit before heading back up to Rose and her mother.

Even now, remembering the look of appreciation in Rose’s eyes when she beheld him in his new suit sent butterflies through his stomach.

He had stayed for dinner and the snow-that-wasn’t-snow and for dessert. And even once that was finished, once the food was cleared away and the dishes piled high in the sink for the following morning, he hadn’t wanted to leave quite yet. So he had accepted Rose’s invitation to sleep on the sofa for the night. Not that Time Lords needed much sleep. (However, newly-regenerated Time Lord could certainly use a nap.)

He had spent the next couple weeks with the Tylers, which was virtually unheard of for him. But the TARDIS had been in no shape to fly, thanks to whatever jiggery-pokery Rose had done to the old girl to look into her heart to become the Bad Wolf. And thanks to his less-than-stellar driving while his brain was imploding and collapsing during some regeneration complications. 

No matter, he had been able to get his beloved ship flying again a week or so after the New Year. In the interim, between TARDIS repairs, he had reconnected with Rose. Answering all of her questions regarding regeneration. Filling in the gaps of her memory during her time as Bad Wolf. Recounting all of their adventures together to prove to her, without a doubt, that he was still the Doctor. Still her Doctor, though he’d never exactly stated it as such.

(Little did he know then that Rose had already considered him her Doctor. She later confessed to him that his earnest attempts to convince her of his identity had been endearing.)

On the evening before he and Rose were to depart for the stars once more, Rose had stayed up late with him in Jackie’s living room and had presented him with a small package. She had seemed slightly embarrassed or self-conscious as he ripped into the brown-paper-wrapped parcel; she had begun rambling about traditions and new beginnings and something about “together”, which he very much liked to think about. He liked the idea of him and Rose together forever.

Upon indelicately ripping off the wrapping paper, he saw a simple white box. When he removed the lid, a Christmas ornament lay nestled in a soft bed of shredded cotton. His hearts had constricted in his chest as he pulled out the ornament, two penguins clad in hats and scarves leaning in to touch the tips of their beaks together. Beneath, in an elegant script, were the words “The Doctor + Rose’s First Christmas” and the year.

“I know it’s silly,” Rose said, still looking anywhere but him. “Christmas is over now, and it’s not like we even had a tree in the TARDIS to put it on, but I saw it and couldn’t resist. Obviously, I wrote in our names. Not many ornaments have ‘the Doctor’ written on ‘em.”

He pulled her into his arms, silencing her words. “It’s perfect,” he said through the lump in his throat. “Tell you what. We can put it up on the tree next Christmas. And get another ornament to go with it. Eh? Can be a tradition.”

Rose wrinkled her nose. “You put up a Christmas tree in that box of yours?”

“Not usually,” he admitted. “But you celebrate Christmas. I want the TARDIS to feel like home for you, and if celebrating all of your little human holidays makes it feel like home, then I want to celebrate with you, however you’d like. If you’d like.”

Her expression softened and she smiled shyly at him. “The TARDIS is already my home, Doctor.”

The admission both floored and delighted him. A big, beaming grin split his face in two, and the echoing expression lit up her face too.

He very nearly kissed her then, and he spent the rest of the night, after Rose had gone to bed, cursing himself for not seizing the opportunity.

No matter. They got there eventually, after a few hiccups in the road.

By the time their second Christmas rolled around, they were an actual proper couple, and they went shopping together not only for their first Christmas tree, but also for the companion to the penguin ornament. They’d decided on two polar bears decorating a Christmas tree together, snouts pressed together in a supposed kiss.

They had bought other decorations as well, but they displayed their couples’ ornaments proudly on the front of the tree, making sure no branches, lights, or baubles obscured them from view.

“I wonder how long it’ll take before we have enough couples’ ornaments to decorate the tree just with them,” Rose mused as they de-decked their tree after the holidays. “Ages and ages, I’ll bet.”

“Well, it’s a good thing we’ve got ages and ages,” he replied, a goofy grin on his face. “Forever, in fact.”

And they did. They had forever together. Whatever Rose had done as Bad Wolf had changed her at the cellular level. Her body wasn’t breaking down at all; it had enough regenerative energy—courtesy of the TARDIS—to replenish any aged and dying cells before they turned hazardous. For all intents and purposes, she would live just as long as the Doctor. Longer, perhaps.

Upon realizing what that meant for them, for their future together, they decided to bind themselves together in every way possible. One soul in two bodies. At least, that was how Rose had liked to think of it when he had explained the telepathic marriage bond. An open channel between them, their minds, allowing them to see the most intimate parts of the other.

There had been no one the Doctor had wanted to share that sort of connection with, apart from Rose. There had never been anyone like her before—nobody he loved as deeply, fiercely, wholly, eternally—and there would never be anyone like her again.

Not even now that she was gone.

It had been over three years since Torchwood. Since Canary Wharf. Since the Daleks and Cybermen and parallel worlds and Void breaches that ended with the multiverse being saved, but with Rose being trapped permanently in another world.

In those first few moments, as he watched the Void breach fold in on itself like a crumpled piece of paper, the Doctor had held his breath and tensed for the inevitable slash of pain in his mind as his bond with Rose broke. But when a minute passed, then two, then ten and his bond with Rose was still there, he relaxed a fraction.

The anguish and desperation clanging from her half of the bond was what kept him sane, funnily enough. Regardless of their mutual devastation, the fact that he could still feel her in his mind meant he hadn’t truly lost her. She wasn’t truly gone. He wasn’t truly alone.

It had taken months for them to adapt and adjust to their new reality. Time moved around them differently; Pete’s World, as he’d dubbed it, moved slightly faster than their prime universe. And time didn’t really exist in the TARDIS. However, they tried to sync their internal body clocks with each other, to sleep and eat and relax at the same time to make up for the fact that they weren’t physically with each other.

Despite having his wife in his head at all times, he still missed her. He missed her more with every passing day. Nevertheless, they had coped as best they could.

However, the holidays still hurt. It hurt to try to celebrate with Rose when she was—literally—worlds away. Universes away. It hurt to go out and get a Christmas tree. It hurt to decorate it. But above all, it hurt to pick out and purchase their couples’ ornament alone. He’d had to pick out the last three on his own, and if his calculations were correct—which they were, because he was quite brilliant—he would be needing to go out and buy a new one soon. Their sixth overall, the fourth he would buy alone.

Despite Rose’s confidence in the Dimension Cannon—a clever bit of technology that the Torchwood researchers and engineers in Pete’s World had been developing for well over a year now—it seemed as though the Cannon hadn’t worked enough to bring her back to this world in time for Christmas.

But he didn’t care when she came home. He just cared that she did come home. One day.

He had been skeptical of the Cannon when Rose first informed him of its creation, but now that it began showing signs of life—acting as a crude teleport—he was cautiously optimistic that one day it would work. Once he or any of the Torchwood scientists managed to figure out how to poke a hole through the Void, through the fabric of reality, large enough for Rose to squeeze through, but small enough that the entire microcosm of the multiverse didn’t implode in the process. It was a delicate balancing act.

However, now that Rose was busy testing the Dimension Cannon, letting it blast her to whatever corner of her universe it fancied, their bond was a little more strained and out of sync. It had nearly given him a hearts-attack when she went utterly silent one day, only to reappear in his mind hours later as though nothing had happened.

She had since taken to warning him about when she was planning a Cannon jump so he wouldn’t be alarmed if she disappeared from his head for a few hours. Though he appreciated it, it didn’t stop his anxiety from squeezing a tight band around his chest. Every time her half of the bond went quiet, he feared he would never hear from her again.

Inevitably, though, she always returned. She would always return.

He had taken to running errands on the days she did her Cannon jumps. Not only did it distract him from the silence in his head, but it gave him a break from trying to keep his body clock synced with Rose’s. He didn’t need to concern himself about when or where he went, or for how long.

On one particular day in the beginning of December—for Rose, at least… Pete’s World had gotten completely out of sync with their universe by now—the Doctor had decided to visit Ghealach, a small moon on the other end of the galaxy that was basically a junk shop masquerading as a bazaar. The unique feature of Ghealach, however, was that it was utterly psy-null. Telepathy was strictly forbidden as a security measure; the shop owners didn’t want a telepathic being creeping into their heads to swindle them out of money and supplies.

As such, if the Doctor were to go to Ghealach, it meant his bond with Rose would be silenced.

I’ll be there for just a few hours, he told her that morning. I should be done by the time you’re back, but in the event that I’m not, I don’t want you to worry.

Thanks for telling me. Stay safe, Doctor.

He snorted. I’m not the one blasting myself to the gods know where.

He got the impression she was sticking her tongue out at him, and so he rolled his eyes right back.

Be safe, he murmured, passing a kiss and a caress down their bond.

He piloted himself to Ghealach but stayed in the TARDIS until Rose’s presence faded from his mind, indicating she’d gone on her jump.

Wearily, the Doctor rubbed at his eyes and at the dull throb that pulsed behind his temples. Ignoring the ache, he grabbed his overcoat, swung it around his shoulders, and exited the TARDIS.

Ghealach was bustling with activity. All sorts of creatures were buying and selling, bartering and trading. While he usually loved the atmosphere—all of those people, all that life—he couldn’t stomach it today.

So he moved with a purpose, knowing where he could find the parts that he needed to fix the TARDIS. Well, not exactly fix, as nothing was technically broken. But the mechanisms behind the fine-tune precision needed for landing at the coordinates he set must be going a bit faulty. He was landing in an incorrect time or location more often than usual.

If Rose were there, she would’ve teased him about his poor piloting skills.

Pushing that thought aside, the Doctor strode from tent to tent, turning out his pockets to exchange whatever baubles and trinkets and bits of alien tech he happened to have.

It took nearly two hours, but he finally had all of the pieces he had sought out to find, plus a few extra bits he didn’t need but might one day have use for.

It took another half hour or wandering to find the TARDIS again. He hadn’t realized how far he had wandered into the labyrinthine stalls of the market. But he finally beheld his glorious ship. It was odd not to hear her welcoming hum as he approached. Even his bond with his ship was muted on this moon.

He slid his key into the lock and turned it, pushing the door inward. Her central rotor gleamed in welcome and the lights flickered between bright and dull. As soon as he closed the door behind him, leaving the psy-null territory, he felt his ship’s utter joy and delight.

“I missed you too,” he cooed to his ship, affectionately rubbing one of the coral struts as he draped his coat across it.

It was only when he’d skipped up to the center console that he realized his ship wasn’t the sole presence in his mind.

Oh! You’re back earlier than I thought, he said, cringing. Sorry, love. Didn’t think I'd be on that moon for so long.

“Doctor.”

Her voice was faint and breathless, and the Doctor clenched his jaw; it sounded as though she was right beside him. He was getting bombarded with a mixture of emotions, strong ones at that. Stronger than he usually felt from their strained bond.

What’s the matter? Everything all right? Jump go okay?

“It’s you… It’s really, actually you.”

He frowned at the display controls of his ship as he worked on sending her into flight. Rose was coming across clearly. He could read every thread of thought and emotion: disbelief, confusion, love, hurt, happiness, desperation. All of it. Everything that was going on inside that beautiful head of hers was broadcast for him to see.

But if he could sense her so easily, then that meant…

Where are you? he asked, frantically tugging the display screen so close to his face that his nose nearly brushed it. He typed at the keyboard fervently, even though he had no coordinates to input. I’ll find you, Rose. I will find you. Gods, you’re here. Where are you? I’ll find you.

A choked sob sounded from his wife, and he reached into himself, into their bond, to cradle her close. A maelstrom hit him, and he couldn’t seem to soothe her, no matter how much comfort and love he swaddled her in.

I know, love. I know. We’re so close. All these years and you’ve finally done it. You’re brilliant, you are. We’re so close now. Just tell me where you are and I’ll come get you and bring you home. But I need to know where you are.

“Turn around.”

Turn around? What? Where are you, Rose? I need as much information as you can give me so I can find you.

“Turn. Around.”

His mind was still churning even as something—someone—touched his shoulder. Fingers gripped his shoulder hard and tugged. Spinning on his heel, his jaw slackened as he beheld the blonde standing before him. Rose. His wife. His bondmate. His everything.

“Rose?” he croaked, clenching his hands into fists at his side.

She looked nearly the same as the day he’d lost her. The planes of her face had sharpened, the roundness of youth having faded over the years, and her hair was a gentler shade of blonde, seemingly professionally dyed rather than a cheap bit of bleaching product she found in the shops.

His eyes roved across her face hungrily, urgently willing her to be real, as his mind sought her out. He hadn’t realized how muffled their bond had become, separated as they were through universes, but now it was in perfect focus, at full power. It was as though a radio station that had been staticky was now tuned.

And all of the emotions swirling through both of their minds was being broadcast on all frequencies. Shock and disbelief and tentative, delicate hope.

“Oh, Doctor!”

Rose launched herself at him, pulling him from his stupor. He wrapped his arms tightly around her, holding her as close as he could. Her warm, small body contoured to his, pressing against every inch of him until there was no space left between them.

Her hands scrabbled at his back, searching for better purchase to cling to him. He buried his nose into the soft spot where her shoulder met her neck and breathed in deeply, inhaling the smell of her. She smelled like energy and electricity, but beneath that was the familiar scent of Rose. Of home.

“What… How…?”

“It worked,” she said, her voice warbling. “The Cannon… it worked. With a bit of help. Needed a bit of alien tech to help brace the Void open, then close it up behind me. Some friendly aliens helped out with that. Though they said the fabric of that reality was already fragile. Not sure what that was about. Torchwood promised to look into it, and I said we’d look into it from this side of things.”

“Fragile?” he asked, pulling away from her. “How can the fabric of reality become ‘fragile’?”

Rose looked like she was about to open her mouth, perhaps to offer her input, but the Doctor realized he didn’t particularly want to talk about the fabric of reality or the universe or anything that wasn’t Rose.

He shook his head and cradled Rose’s jaw in her palm, brushing his thumb against her lower lip. She sighed, her warm breath ghosting across his hand.

“I’ve missed you,” he rasped, raking his eyes over her face to recommit every detail to memory. She was even more beautiful, more breathtaking, than he remembered. “So much, Rose. There wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t miss you. And I know we were never truly apart, but…”

Rose rocked up onto her toes, fisted her hands in the lapels of his suit, and tugged him down until their mouths met in a hard kiss. All thoughts left his mind as he lost himself in her. The taste of her, the touch of her, the smell of her, the sound of her, the sight of her. His senses were utterly overwhelmed by her, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. Pleasure sparked through his veins as their lips moved together in a familiar rhythm of pulling and yielding, sliding and gliding.

A full-body shudder rippled down his spine as his mouth parted for her probing tongue. The little whimper she let out weakened his knees and he stumbled back a step until his backside pressed against the central console of the TARDIS.

Rose followed, not breaking the kiss. The Doctor braced himself against the console, more than willing to let Rose cage him in, resting her weight against his. Their bodies moved together, rocking and writhing as their hands explored every inch of each other that they’d been deprived of for three and a half years.

“I missed you,” he murmured between frantic kisses. “I love you.”

I love you, he whispered into her mind. His half of the bond wrapped around her half even tighter than his body wrapped around hers, needing to feel her everywhere, needing to hold her close to convince himself that this was real, that she was real, and that she was here with him.

“I’m here,” she mumbled against his mouth. I’m here. I’m back. I came back. I love you. I love you.

Her hands moved restlessly across his body, alternating between pressing into the small of his back and his hair. Desire rippled through him as their hips and legs tangled together, rubbing and grinding and relishing all of the sensations they’d been deprived of for these many long years.

Sure, they’d had the mental presence of each other during their separation, but no number of mental embraces could replace a real hug, of being ensconced in another’s arms, two bodies inhabiting one space.

A deep groan rumbled up the Doctor’s chest as he devoured Rose’s mouth. The bedroom was too far away for the utter need throbbing through them both. Hastily removing all necessary pieces of clothing, they joined together on the raggedy old jump seat. Their bodies moved as one, touching and kissing and teasing and tasting until their coupling culminated in the pinnacle of pleasure and love.

Afterwards, they sat slumped together, panting for breath and clinging to each other. The Doctor skated his fingertips up and down the smooth expanse of Rose’s spine. She still had her shirt on, and the fabric bunched and fell with every up and down motion of his hand.

“I love you,” he said groggily, pressing a series of kisses to the column of her throat. His mind was blissfully blank and full of Rose. She was everywhere, filling the deep, dark expanse of his mind with her light and warmth.

“You feel so good,” she sighed, nuzzling closer physically and mentally. “I hadn’t realized how faint our bond had become. But now… God.”

“Mmm,” he hummed in agreement. Then he asked the question that had slowly been eating away at him. “How long were you waiting in here? How did you even find the ship? That moon… you wouldn’t have been able to feel her—or me.”

“Maybe a half hour,” Rose said. “Felt like an eternity. But then I reminded myself that I was lucky enough to have found the TARDIS at all. I would’ve been devastated to know I’d landed here but just missed you.”

He would’ve been devastated too. Even more horrifying was the idea that Rose wouldn’t even have been able to reach out for him to tell him where she was, what with that telepathic dampener suppressing their bond.

“But I was just wandering around when I found the TARDIS,” Rose continued. “I nearly walked right by her at first, ‘cos I didn’t think the jump had actually worked. I figured I was on an alien planet in that other universe. But then I walked past her and the door just… clicked open. That’s when I turned and saw her, and I ran right in.

“But then I wasn’t sure which version of you it would be. Everything about the TARDIS looked the same, so I figured I wasn’t too far off. Then I was beginning to think about how I would explain everything if it was a past you. Especially if it was a past you who hadn’t met me yet; how on Earth would I explain to you who I was and why you needed to help me.”

“The marriage bond would’ve been proof enough,” he assured her, tapping at his temple for emphasis. “The bond transcends time, through regenerations, past and present. No matter which version of me walked through those doors, I would have known who you are.”

“Thank God it was you,” she said. “Though for a minute there I thought I went mad and was invisible.”

He offered her a sheepish grin. “Sorry. I didn’t think to look around the TARDIS. I didn’t expect anyone to be in here.”

She smirked at him, then nestled her head into the crook of his neck, letting out a sated sigh Despite the sound of utter contentment, she murmured, “We should get up.”

“Or we could stay here like this forever,” he countered.

“As wonderful as that sounds, my legs are going half numb,” she retorted. “And I feel disgusting. I could use a shower, if you’d care to join me?”

His belly swooped in renewed desire as he nodded fervently. Rose grinned at him, her tongue poking teasingly out of the corner of her mouth. He pinched her bum for her cheek, causing her to shriek with laughter and swat at his hand.

A daft grin settled across his face at the sound. Oh, how he’d missed her.

He couldn’t help but lean up to plant a row of tiny kisses across her jaw, beginning at the sensitive skin beneath her ear and working his way to the corner of her mouth. He felt her cheek lift in a smile as her hand went to the back of his head to keep him where he was. As if he would ever wish to stop kissing her.

“Shower?” he mumbled against her skin, slowly making a path down her neck.

“Mhm,” she hummed distractedly.

He laughed softly and pressed a final kiss to the hollow of her throat. “Come on. Let’s get cleaned up.”

Rose heaved a great sigh but dutifully lifted herself off of his lap to stand on wobbly legs. He followed suit, and they each fixed their jumble of half-off clothing before they moved, hand in hand, down the corridor of their home.

Part Two (the Christmas fluff) coming soon!

[thedcdunce]

The Atom

“Size isn't matter.” - The Atom

Real Name: Raymond “Ray” Palmer

Gender: Male

Height: 6′ 0″

Weight: 180 lbs (82 kg)

Eyes: Brown

Hair: Auburn

Powers:

Microscopic Stability

Abilities:

Judo

Physics

Swordsmanship

Weaknesses:

Missing Hand

Equipment:

Bio-Belt

Katarthan's Sword

Indigo Tribe Staff

Universe: 

Earth-One

New Earth

Base of Operations:

Ivy Town, Connecticut

Morlaidh, Amazon Rainforest, Brazil

Citizenship: American

Parents:

David Palmer; father

Susan Palmer; mother

Marital Status: 

Divorced (Jean Loring; wife)

Widowed (Laethwen; wife)

Occupation: 

Professor

Scientist

Adventurer

Education: PhD Ivy University

First Appearance: Showcase #34 (October, 1961)

Last Appearance: Titans Vol 2 #38 (October, 2011)

Powers

Microscopic Stability: For some reason, Ray's physiology allows him to not explode when he is miniaturized unlike other living things which explode after a short time of being miniaturized.

Abilities

Judo: Ray Palmer often finds himself in situation where physical violence become necessary. As such, he has developed a proficiency in the martial art judo.

Physics: Dr. Palmer has a Ph.D. in physics and was a full professor at Ivy University.

Swordsmanship: The Atom used a long sword as a weapon while living among the Katarthans, gaining considerable skill in its use.

Weaknesses

Missing Hand: He allowed Baracuda to cut off his left hand to save Ryan Choi from the miniverse.

Equipment

Bio-Belt: Originally, Ray's size/weight controls were located in his belt buckle. However, he later moved them to his gloves for greater accessibility and swifter transitions, and in the costume he wore after his days in New Morlaidh, had an encepholpathic grid in his mask that allowed him to do it mentally.

Size Alteration: Able to shrink his body to varying degrees, achieved by storing most of his mass in a pocket dimension. As the Atom, Ray can assume any size from his normal six-foot stature down to sub-microscopic, although he generally deems a height of six inches as most functional.

Mass Alteration: Able to instantly alter his molecular density to whatever degree he desires. Ray can also assume any weight at any height—up to his full 180 pounds.

Flight: He is able to glide on air currents and stiff breezes. A favorite travel method Ray had, was to call some location on the telephone; when the intended phone answered, he could shrink down enough to literally travel through the phone lines in seconds to emerge out of the answering phone.

Superhuman Strength: By shifting all his mass into his fists he can punch with incredible force.

Dimensional Travel: Ray found out that by shrinking beyond the subatomic scale he could slip beneath reality at the quantum level to traverse around the multiverse at will.

Katarthan's Sword: The Atom used a long sword as a weapon while living among the Katarthans, gaining considerable skill in its use.

Indigo Tribe Staff

Personality

Ray Palmer is a hard-working, dedicated man. In fact, "dedicated" is hardly the word for it; "driven" is a little closer to the truth. Once Ray starts working on a problem or puzzle, there is absolutely no stopping him. This single-minded pursuit of his goals is more than a little responsible for Ray's shattered marriage, though it has occasionally come in handy to Ray the crime fighter. In spite of his obsessiveness, Ray is a level-headed hero and a likeable human being.

History

Ray Palmer is the Atom, the Mighty Mite, a superhero with the ability to shrink to incredible sizes while retaining his full mass, making him a formidable combatant. He was a member of the original Justice League of America, where he gained a great deal of respect from his peers. Aside from his crime-fighting career, he is also one of the world's top scientific minds, given his background as a brilliant physicist. He is capable of shrinking to subatomic sizes, and explores the universe on a frontier unknown to any other man.

Origins

Ray Palmer grew up in Ivy Town, Connecticut where he studied physics at Ivy University, under renowned scientists such as Alpheus P. Hyatt. He began dating law student Jean Loring, eventually becoming exclusive. Both graduating and working in their professions, Ray would frequently ask Jean to marry him, but she would always decline, wanting to establish herself as a lawyer before getting married and settling down.

While a physics graduate student, Ray Palmer discovered a tiny fragment of white dwarf star material that had fallen to Earth. Investigating matter compression, Ray theorized that if he were to grind a lens from this fragment and focus ultraviolet light through it, he could shrink anything struck by the light down to a fraction of its original size. Ray rushed off to his laboratory, tried the experiment, and found that it worked exactly as he had imagined but the objects he shrunk became unstable and exploded moments later.

A couple of days later, a disillusioned Ray and some friends became trapped in a cave-in while out spelunking. Ray was forced to risk instability and use the shrinking lens on himself in order to escape the cave and save the lives of his friends. For some reason, however, Ray didn't explode and returned to his normal height. In fact, the shrinking lens worked on his body much better than he had expected, and he developed a set of control devices that gave him limited control over his weight as well as his size. Ray later hypothesized that some unknown "x-factor" in his genetic makeup prevented his atoms from becoming unstable, though many scientists now believe that Ray's ability to shrink was actually made possible by the "Metagene", which is the source of many superhumans' powers.

Early Career

Keeping his discoveries a secret, even from his Jean, Ray created the identity of the Atom and began a career of crime fighting in Ivy Town. In his first recorded adventure, the Atom stopped the crook Carl Ballard from exploiting the tiny alien Kulan Dar, to commit his crimes. Foiling this plot, the Atom became a trusted hero in Ivy Town, and established a great working relationship with the local police. Next, the Atom defended the wealthy Doctor Gordon Heath from a plot against him orchestrated by his caretaker Bates.

The Atom's heroics made him an ally of the CIA, who sent him overseas to rescue Professor Anton Kraft from foreign spies. Returning home, he stopped crooked newspaper reporter Greg Phillips from stealing valuable chess pieces. The Atom met his first super-villain when battling Jason Woodrue, an exile from the Floral Dimension, who attempted to take over the Earth with specially bred plants. The Atom defeated Woodrue with the help of Maya Queen of the Dryads that live in the Floral Dimension. Atom next stopped jewel thief Bart Tranter with the help of the self proclaimed Mr. Odd and recaptures Carl Ballard when he masters Kulan Dar's teleportation abilities.

The Atom would next be used in a bizarre plot by Amos Fortune and other villains to destroy the Justice League of America, using a de-memorizor ray to pit the Atom against the League. With the aid of the Atom, the team of heroes would defeat Fortune and his minions and elect the Atom as a member of their group. Next, the Atom would have his first clash with Chronos, a criminal obsessed with time.

Reconnecting with Professor Hyatt, Ray would learn of Hyatt's experiments with the Time Pool, a device of Hyatt's creation allowing him to "fish" for items out of a tiny portal that can bring items through time. As the Atom, Ray would travel back time to ancient Middle East where he would help a young boy named Hassan best a group of thieves and bring back a golden Dinar for Hyatt's study. When simultaneous nuclear explosions on Earth-One and a parallel world causes the two to merge, the Atom helps the JLA prevent the inhabitants of that world from destroying three major cities on Earth to prevent the cataclysm and work together to revolve the problem.

When visiting Happy Harbor, Rhode Island to give a lecture as Ray Palmer, the Atom comes to the rescue of Entron Kol a visitor from a sub-atomic world who is trapped on Earth and uses a wish fulfillment device to try to draw help to his plight. Returning to Ivy Town, the Atom foils an attempt by a crooked photographer named Elkins from framing Tom Parks for crimes he did not commit. Ray would next attend a JLA meeting were the team would ponder how to get out of a dangerous scenario posed by one of their fans.

When Ray's colleague, the world-traveling Ted Ralston is turned into diamond by a strange stone he brought back from one of his expeditions, Ray would travel into the microscopic world inside the gem where he would clash with the Atlantean tyrant Karl Jat. Next he would foil jewel thief Fred Harris' plot to rob a lake side community using local folklore to hoax the people into thinking the thefts were perpetuated by a ghost. The Atom would next be targeted with the rest of the JLA by the Tornado Tyrant. In another adventure with the Justice League, Ray would aid the League in liberating the people of the micro-world of Starzl, whose three android defenders had turned evil.

Back in Ivy Town, Atom would foil a plot by stage manager Howard Crane from framing former astronaut Peter Venner for crimes he did not commit and in a Time Pool adventure travels back to 18th century London to foil Dick Turpin from stealing the king's gold. The Atom and the rest of the JLA would next be forced into exile from the planet Earth due to the manipulations of Dr. Density, however the JLA would foil this plot, ending their exile. When preventing an invasion of Earth from the Thalens, the Atom would team up with extraterrestrial lawman Hawkman and his partner Hawkgirl, forming a long lasting partnership between the trio.

On another Justice League case, the Atom and his fellow JLA members would clash with Spaceman X. Later the Atom would be present with the JLA in their first team up with the Justice Society of America, their counterparts from Earth-Two, against the Crime Champions, a group of villains from both universes. While on the home front, Ray would battle an escaped Dr. Light, stop Alfred Trask an art gallery employee working the masterpieces his employer has on display, would battle an evil doppelganger created of himself created out of a lab experiment gone awry and thwart an attempted kidnapping of the king of France during a Time Pool adventure to the year 1609. His next meeting with the JLA would be less eventful with the group relating their battle against Queen Bee while Ray would tell them of his encounter against Dr. Light.

Working with the CIA once again, the Atom would go to Vienna to collect the plans for a new anti-gravity metal, however exposes it as a communist plot to destroy America, and back home foils Doro Briggs' theft scheme involving hoaxing people into believing that she can transform into a swan. The Atom aids his fellow Justice League colleagues in once more defeating and capturing their old foe Kanjar Ro and Kraad the Conqueror, tyrant ruler of a sidereal dimension.

Back home, Ray would attend a Ivy University ten-year reunion, where he would foil Jack Archer's attempt to use hypnosis to steal a priceless Buddha statue, followed by a cruise with Jean Loring where he would stymie invaders from Randath. Next Atom and a number of his fellow JLA members would be rapidly aged by Despero, but later restored to normal following Despero's defeat at the hands of his fellow JLA members who were unaffected.

On the home front, Ray would find his powers being used for crime when he is temporarily the prisoner of a crook who uses his body as a power source for a ray gun and later uses the Time Pool to travel to Baltimore circa 1849 where he helps Edgar Alan Poe solve a mystery involving stolen gold coins. Atom would next aid the Flash in stopping an invasion of Earth by Attila-5. Later the Atom and his friends in the Justice League would be manipulated by the ultra-galactic "I", an evil being who's very existence was threatened by the JLA's continued success.

In Ivy Town, Ray would clash once more with Chronos and clear the good name of his civilian identity when he is accused of a crime he did not commit. Back with the Justice League, the Atom is present when Green Lantern relates a solo adventure to the group and would be among the super-powered members of the League to go on "strike" following a UN sanction preventing them from using their powers, all a plot orchestrated by the evil Headmaster Mind. Still with the League, he would be present when a video created by Superman's father Jor-El, regarding the other planets he considered sending his son prior to Krypton's destruction.

Resuming his activities in Ivy Town, Ray would battle his own costume when it briefly gained sentience and aid Doc Magnus in rebuilding the Metal Men and stop the evil Uranium. When visiting his old classmate Ed Thayer, Atom would get caught up in an attempt by foreign spies trying to steal Thayer's Illusion-Maker device and foil the teleporting Hyper-Thief's robberies. Atom is also present when the Justice League invites his ally Hawkman into the group and in attendance of Aquaman's marriage to Mera.

Next, while on vacation the Ray becomes the temporary pawn of criminal inventor Andrew Frost, battles Brain Storm with the JLA, crushes the Hooded Hijackers, and uses the Time Pool to travel to the 19th Century, where he comes to the rescue of writer Jules Verne. Atom would become an unwilling pawn of the Endless One, and is forced to fight some of his fellow JLA members and when restored to normal becomes a victim in one of Dr. Destiny's plots to get revenge against the JLA.

The Atom would have to combat side-effects of his Time Pool adventures when battling the evil Phantom Mask, and spend a brief time thinking he was a flea in a flea circus when spies attempt to replace Ray Palmer with one of their own agents. He would next aid Zatanna search for her missing father on a micro-world ruled by the Druid. Later, joins with the Justice League in once more battling Brain Storm. Going solo, Atom prevents crooks from benefiting from his "stool-pigeon" computer and with the aid of Maya and the Dryads posing as Leprechauns, convince Arthur Ennis to fill a witness report with the police following a robbery. During his next team up with Hawkman, and Hawkgirl against Matter Master, the trio of heroes would trust their secret identities to each other. Atom and his fellow JLA members would team up with the JSA against the evil Johnny Thunder of Earth-One who has manipulated the Thunderbolt into creating Earth-A and the Lawless League, criminal versions of the Justice League.

The CIA once more hires the Atom to stop a group of Russian spies who are attempting to manipulate Jean Loring's father in an attempt to get at the Atom, and on another Time Pool to 18th century London where the Atom prevents one of Professor Hyatt's ancestors from being thrown in debtors' prison. Atom would also aid his fellow JLA members in preventing global disaster and conflict inadvertently created by Andrew Helm's Corti-Conscience machine. Acting solo, he stops a common thug named Eddie Gordon from enslaving the Bat-Knights of the Elvaran people. Atom next helps Batman, Robin, and Elongated Man capture "Numbers" Garvey and his gang.

The Atom also aids the Justice League in defeating the Key during his attack. Returning to Ivy Town, the Atom makes up a story about alien invaders to make the return of a radion-ball sound like a more exciting adventure and foils a robbery plot orchestrated by groundskeeper Billy Knowels. Atom's powers are briefly pilfered by Professor Ivo in a plot against the Flash, when the Flash relates the story to his fellow JLA members including the Atom, they are unaware as they are not using their powers at the time. Next Atom would join the Justice League and Metamorpho in battling the Unimaginable.

After liberating the Floral Dimension and Earth from destruction at the hands of Jason Woodrue, the Atom would join the JLA in curing Batman, Green Lantern, and Flash from a plague infected upon them by the Unimaginable. Atom would return to Ivy Town, to foil a series of robberies orchestrated by Bill Jameson, the so-called "Man in the Ion-Mask". Working with the CIA once more, the Atom would travel to Russia to foil Boris Kalumchuk's plot to poison America with irradiated gold. Ray would next join the Justice League of America in their battle against the Shaggy Man.

Engagement to Jean Loring

Back in Ivy Town, the Atom would earn a new villain in the Bug-Eyed Bandit. During this adventure Jean accepts proposal for marriage for fear that Ray would eventually become too absorbed in his work to ask her anymore. When both Earth-One and Earth-Two are threatened by the Anti-Matter Man, the Atom would be one of the Justice League and Justice Society members gathered to combat the threat.

Going solo in Ivy Town once more, the Atom would crush the Panther Gang and going on another Time Pool journey to 18th century France where he foils an assassination attempt against Benjamin Franklin. Returning to the JLA, the Atom would aid them in stopping the Lord of Time from manipulating Vietnam war hero Sgt. Eddie Brent. Returning home, Atom would clash with once more against his old foe Chronos. Later, when the entire population of Ivy Town suddenly shrinks, Ray learns that a chunk of white dwarf star landing in the city water supply is the cause, and cures the people with no ill side effects. Ray would next work together with his Earth-Two counterpart in foiling a plot by the Thinker to rob Earth-One and escape to Earth-Two. At a JLA meeting, Atom, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Batman and Elongated Man would all learn that of Zatanna's success in freeing her father with the help of magical proxies that she created of the heroes following her respective encounters with each of them.

Ray would return to Ivy Town where he would stumble upon and foil another plot by Eddie Gordon to manipulate the Elvarian Bat-Kights. He is also present when the JLA must face the evil Mastermind, who has turned many of the League members weapons against them. Atom would team-up with Hawkman once more to search for the missing Johnny Burns, a reformed crook, to reunite him with his sick mother. During the encounter, they battle Toyboy, Johnny's evil half brought to life when Mrs. Burns is briefly endowed with mental powers following a scientific accident. Rejoining the JLA, Atom would foil the Royal Flush Gang's attempt to destroy the League.

When paralyzed in a lab accident, Ray manages to get Jean to activate his size-control devices causing him to shrink to microscopic size, freeing him of the paralysis. Before returning to Earth, he would save the sub-atomic people of Palonds from the evil Honds. The Atom would also be present to cheer on a UN-sponsored charity race between Superman and the Flash. He would later team-up with Aquaman against the plankton creature called Galg the Destroyer. After a rematch against the Bug-Eyed Bandit, the Atom would team-up with the Elongated Man against Chronos. After battling the Big Gang, witnessing another race between Superman and the Flash, foiling "Smarts" and his gang, Atom has another Time Pool adventure to London to prevent Colonel Tom Blood from stealing the crown jewels from the Tower of London.

The Atom is one of the members of the Justice League enslaved by Queen Bee, until they are saved by Batgirl. In another revenge plot against the Justice League, Dr. Destiny briefly switches the League's bodies with some of their greatest foes. For a time, Atom would be forced to trade bodies with Jason Woodrue, until Dr. Destiny's ultimate defeat. When twin transmitter towers on Earth-One and Earth-Two cause people to rapidly age either forward or backward, Earth-Two's Atom would have to briefly battle a young and hot-headed Ray Palmer before destroying the towers and returning everyone back to normal. Atom would next work with Batman in foiling the Cannoneer from robbing the Brotherhood Express. The Atom would also be involved in a Justice League case where the group would get embroiled in a gang war between the Pyrotekniks and the Bulleteers in a complex scheme hatched by mobster Leo Locke.

The Atom would soon gain an unusual ally in his next adventure, Major Mynah, a mynah bird that he meets foiling a group of Viet Cong soldiers from raiding a Cambodian temple while on an archeological dig in the region. With the bird injured in the battle, Atom takes the helpful creature to Hawkman who replaces the bird's broken wings with mechanical ones. Major Mynah becomes Ray's pet, following him in both his civilian and costumed identities. After helping the Atom capture crooks, Major Mynah's involvement almost tips Jean off to Ray's secret identity and so he comes up with a method of disguising Mynah for future adventures. The Atom would return to the Justice League and foil the Key's plot of using Superman to destroy the JLA and later battle Dr. Anomaly. Ray and Major Mynah would next go into action to stop an invasion from the alien Physalians from feeding on the humans they have captured. The Atom is one of the JLA members seemingly killed by T.O. Morrow, he is restored to life following Morrow's defeat at the hands of the JSA, their new ally Red Tornado and surviving members of the JLA.

Justice League Mainstay

As time would go on, Ray would eventually get involved in less frequent solo adventures, often teaming up with either Hawkman or getting involved in many of the Justice League's cases.

Ray joins Carter and Sheira Hall on vacation in Mexico City and battles Telka and his followers. With the Justice League, the Atom battles the laughable Generalissimo Demmy Gog of Offalia, in a pathetic attempt to conquer the world. The Atom next is hired by the FBI to break up a spy ring. He succeeds thanks to the intervention of Major Mynah. This would mark the Atom's last use of Major Mynah. The bird's ultimate fate is unknown. Atom also finds himself involved in a revenge plot enacted by criminal Jason Madden, who attempts to kill his former accomplice Chuck Wheeler. Atom aids the Justice League in clearing Green Arrow's name in a murder frame-up plotted by Headmaster Mind and the Tattooed Man. Ray is involved in a Justice League investigation of the new costumed vigilante known as the Creeper.

While attending a science convention with Carter Hall, Ray and Carter are attacked by a man resembling Carter. This gets them embroiled in a battle against the Shiva, Hindu goddess of destruction, who with her army of Nether-Men is attempting to win back worship of humanity. Through the efforts of the Atom, Hawkman and Hawkgirl the plot is thwarted. The Atom would join his fellow Justice League colleagues in traveling to Mars and aiding their comrade Martian Manhunter against the evil Commander Blanx, a battle ends in J'onn J'onzz's resignation from the team. Ray next goes into action as the Atom to foil a plot by rival university professor Horace McByrd to discredit Ray among his peers. Ray next joins the JLA and Hawkgirl in saving Hawkman who has been turned into salt by a group of demons, fighting off their minions a biker gang known as the Gruesome Ghouls in the process. When Professor Heinrich Von Rilk is almost assaulted by Ivy University students for destroying an electron-microscope, Ray learns that Von Rilk did it to prevent an invasion from a microscopic world. Investigating the claims as the Atom, Ray confirms Heinrich's story, and stops the invasion by defeating its vanguard, a creature known as Ag. Atom would be among the members of the Justice League and Justice Society who would ban together to save both universes from the threat of Aquarius, a living star creature bent on revenge for being exiled by his superiors.

When Jean Loring is kidnapped by the people of Jimberen, a microscopic world who believe that she is the descendant of their ruler, Atom and Hawkman team-up to rescue her. However, due to the radiation the people of Jimberen expose Jean to, she is driven insane from the ordeal. With technology on Hawkman and Hawkgirl's homeworld of Thanagar making it possible to cure Jean, Atom would entrust her to the care of Hawkgirl.

Focusing on Justice League business, Atom would be one of the members who would accidentally have an evil duplicate of himself created out of his ego, which would battle new Justice League member Black Canary. When an influential man named John Dough would attempt to turn the United States government against the JLA, manipulating Snapper Carr into betraying the group, the Atom would be involved in the conflict, which would reveal Dough to be none other than the Joker. Atom and the Justice League would soon setup shop in a new base, an orbital satellite above the Earth.

During this time, Atom and the other members of the JLA would team up with the Vigilante against the Doomsters, aliens who threatened to pollute the Earth.

Ray would ultimately learn that Hawkgirl's quest to restore Jean's sanity on Thanagar was met with trouble when both women's souls were stolen by Norch Lor, a scientist from Thanagar who's misguided intention to save the universe from the coming "end of all things" was attempting to collect the souls of all living beings in a Ghenna Box. With the help of Tomar-Re of the Green Lantern Corps, Ray and the Justice League would restore Hawkgirl and Jean's souls to their bodies, Jean however would still remain insane. Atom and Hawkman would travel together en route to Thanagar to try and get Jean the help she needs, and along the way run into the threat that Norch Lor was attempting to protect them from: The insane Jest-Master, who leaves all those in his path completely mad. With the help of the Justice League, Atom and Hawkman would defeat the Jest-Master. In the aftermath of the battle, Jean's constant exposure to Jest-Master's insanity rays would restore her sanity to normal. Returning to Earth, the Atom would once more join the Justice League and the Justice Society in preventing another threat to both Earth-One and Earth-Two. This time coming from a being called Creator2, whom by utilizing Red Tornado's connection to both realities, would attempt to merge the two universes together, threatening to destroy both. Atom and his colleagues would foil this plot, however the Spectre would seemingly perish in the process.

Sword of the Atom

Ray and Jean's marriage would become strained over time as Jean's law practice and Ray's devotion to both science and super-heroics would take time over their romance. Soon, Jean would begin an affair with her fellow lawyer Paul Hoben, which Ray would stumble upon one night. Realizing their marriage was on the rocks, Ray would decide to investigate White Dwarf star radiations he detected out of South America and decide to investigate it without Jean. Taking a flight with some drug runners, he would learn too much about an illegal cocaine field and prompting the pilots to attempt to kill Ray. However, the pilot would be shot and Ray would jump ship and shrink down to Atom size. Ray would be struck by lightning trapping him at a height of six inches. The plane would crash, and because one of the men aboard stole one of Ray's rings, the world would presume him dead and Jean would go on with her life and pursue her relationship with Paul. Ray meanwhile would find himself captured by aliens known as the Katarthans—small aliens whose ancestors were left on Earth centuries ago and live in a world of high technology and barbarism. With a revolt immanent, Ray would be captured along with members of a resistance led by Taren.

Forced into gladiator battles, Ray would learn the Katarthans' language and befriend Taren and learn that he hoped to overthrow their leader Caellich and marry princess Laethwen. The two men would become unknowing pawns of Deraegis who would seek to cause the people to revolt against Caellich so that he could rule. To this end, he would blind Taren, causing the people to protest. Taren, Atom, and Laethwen would escape the arena and flee into the jungles where they would reunite with the rebels. Knowing his end is near, Taren would turn over leadership of the rebels to Atom, and perish while the group fled an army of carnivorous ants. Atom and Laethwen would soon fall in love with each other. Atom would lead the warriors on to Moralaidh to launch a revolution. In the final battle, both Caellich and Deraegis would be slain, but not before Deraegis would activate an old star drive powered by a white dwarf star fragment. Attempting to save his newly adopted people, Ray would dive into the plant to try and stop the reactor from exploding. However the white star radiation would cause him to grow as it irradiated him and smash his way through. Growing to near human height, Ray would frighten the people away before the reactor exploded. Restored to his normal height and in a delirium caused by radiation exposure, Ray would pass out and be found by rescuers. Waking up in the hospital, Ray would come to realize that he no longer had an interest in returning to his old life and have moved on from Jean. Having learned that Jean had come to South America looking for him he would decide to finalize their divorce and try to find Laethwen again.

Returning to Ivy Town to settle his affairs, Ray would realize that there wold be no way to rekindle his romance with Jean. In repairing his size change belt, Ray would find that the process of shrinking would cause him great pain due to his absorption of massive amounts of white dwarf radiation and would fear that constantly changing his size could eventually kill him. Finalizing his divorce from Jean, Ray would put his money on an expedition back into South America, taking along with him writer Norman Brawler to chronicle the experience. The two men would run afoul of drug dealers and Ray would shrink down to Atom, giving up his normal height seemingly for the last time to help destroy the drug operation. Finding the Moralaidh tribe and being reunited with Laethwen, Ray would leave Norman to find his own way back. Norman would publish the tale in a book called The Atom's Farewell, which would become a best seller.

Ray would lead Laethwen's people in building a new New Moralaidh and rebuilding the alien societies lost technology, he and Laethwen would become wed as well. However, his past life could not stay away, as when Jean would marry Paul Hoben and when the newly weds would clear out Ray's lab she would accidentally shrink herself. In order to restore her to her normal height, Paul would have Norman Brawler lead him and Jean to find Ray. However, along the way, Jean would be captured by minions of rebel leader Torgul who had captured many of the Moralaidhian women including Laethwen. Ray would lead a mission to rescue the captured women, which would end in Torgul's death, and the freedom of his people. With Jean restored to her normal height, Ray and Laethwen would wish them farewell, Ray leaving Paul with his old size changing belt.

Ray would remain New Moralaidh's champion but would come at times to aid his old allies in the Justice League of America.

Crisis on Infinite Earths

When the evil Anti-Monitor attempted to destroy the entire multiverse, his opposing force the Monitor would sacrifice his life to shunt the five surviving realities into limbo, however they were slowly merging together causing chaos on all worlds and threatening their destruction in the process. Alexander Luthor, Jr. of Earth-Three and the Harbinger would gather heroes and villains from all realities in an attempt to rally their support in saving what was left of the multiverse. Atom would be among their numbers and would agree to aid in the effort.

Ray would be called in to examine the Red Tornado, who is recaptured by the heroes following a lengthy captivity under the Anti-Monitor who converted the android into an engine of destruction. However, despite the best efforts of the Atom and T.O. Morrow, the Red Tornado would self destruct, causing massive damage to the JLA Satellite, and apparently destroying the Red Tornado.

Later on in the Crisis, when a united group of super-villains from each surviving reality would attempt to conquer each earth, Atom would be among a group of super-heroes dispatched to Earth-S to attempt to quell the uprising in that reality. Although the heroes there were made prisoner, the Atom would be part of a counter attack of heroes that were uncaptured, and would succeed in freeing Billy Batson allowing the boy to change into Captain Marvel and turn the tides of battle.

Changes Caused by Crisis on Infinite Earths

Following the defeat of the Anti-Monitor, the surviving parallel worlds were combined to create a new universe. While, much of the Atom's Pre-Crisis history remains the same, many of his past adventures may have been altered or erased from existence entirely. In particular, Atom's encounters with Hawkman may be different given the extensive changes of Hawkman's origins. The Thanagarian Katar Hol is replaced in Post-Crisis history with Earth native Carter Hall the Hawkman formerly from Earth-Two.

In addition, due to the massive changes in the histories of his fellow JLA colleagues Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, the Atom's history may have been altered by proxy and many of his adventures alongside these heroes no longer be part of history.

In addition, many of the adventures that the Atom had with the Justice League of America that involved traveling to other universes, particularly their encounters with the Justice Society of America on Earth-Two, likely no longer exist, or if they do, in a vastly different manner such that the multiversal threat was simply a threat to a single unified universe.

Lastly, the Atom's encounters with his Earth-Two counterpart may no longer be part of history, or if they are, they have been altered in such a way to accommodate the notion that these adventures only happened in a single universe as opposed to having occurred on Earth-One and Earth-Two.

Power of the Atom

The Katarthans and their village were soon wiped out by a horrible fire and the Atom returned to Ivy Town, only to find that one of his friends had written a book exposing Ray's secret identity in his absence. After battling various foes, such as Strobe, Humbug, and Swarm, Ray learned that a US Government agency had engineered the destruction of the Katarthans, in order to induce his return to the States. He avenged the Katarthans by permanently reducing the agents responsible for the massacre to six inches in height. Ray returned to Ivy Town just long enough to bid his friends farewell, and then briefly went into hiding.

Suicide Squad

The shrunken agents, now calling themselves the Micro Squad, vowed revenge on Ray. Ginsburg, one of their number, made an attempt on Ray's life, but died in the attempt. Ray approached Amanda Waller, who convinced him to fake his own death and secretly join the espionage unit known as the Suicide Squad. As a part of this mission, Ray went undercover and Adam Cray served in the Suicide Squad as the new Atom. Adam was killed by Blacksnake and Ray resumed the role of the Atom. Later still, he joined the then-current Justice League on a semi-active basis.

Teen Titans

Al Pratt, the original Atom, died during a battle against Extant in Zero Hour. During this event, Ray was also hit with a blast of chrono-energy that de-aged him into a youth again. He would go on to become a member of the Teen Titans.

Identity Crisis

In time, Ray and Jean were able to be friends again. In the divorce she had received half of his patents. As a gesture of friendship, Jean decided to sign them back to him. Little did he know that this was but one of many facets to Jean's deadly scheme to win Ray back. Since their divorce, Jean had somehow become seriously deranged and believed that the only way to be reunited with Ray was to force the issue. Incredibly, she devised an elaborate plan to endanger Sue Dibny, wife of Elongated Man Ralph Dibny. Jean was privy to the fact that every year on her birthday, Ralph would be absent solving a custom-tailored mystery devised by Sue. She bypassed the Dibnys' security by shrinking down and traveling via the phone lines into their home. She then entered Sue's body and obstructed the blood flow to her brain. To cover up this evidence, Jean scorched Sue's body.

Jean knew that this event would send all the heroes scrambling to protect their loved ones and—hopefully—drive Ray back into her arms. Jean employed two other schemes to cover her tracks. First, she faked an attempt on her life, then she hired Captain Boomerang to kill Robin's father Jack Drake. She supplied Drake with a gun to defend himself, hoping that Boomerang would be killed and that everyone would believe he was Sue's killer as well. Eventually, Dr. Mid-Nite's autopsy of Sue's body revealed the truth, and the Atom himself elicited a confession from Jean after she inadvertently spilled the beans when asking about a letter sent to Jack along with the gun. Ray managed to put two and two together because Batman had taken the letter away from the crime scene even before the police arrived, so only he and the Leaguers were supposed to know of its existence. She was promptly admitted to Arkham Asylum. With Jean's incarceration, Ray was overwhelmed with despair, and shrank continuously until he vanished completely into a microscopic or subatomic world.

Ray's legacy would continue on with Ryan Choi utilizing a version of his costume and shrinking device to become the current Atom for a short time.

Countdown

During the missing year following the events known as the second Crisis, Palmer's technology is employed by Supernova to shrink and grow in size in order to enter and exit the bottle city of Kandor.

Ray took refuge the Nanoverse, and met a young mystic who told him about the new reformed existence of the Multiverse. He traveled through different realities and find himself in Earth-51, where its heroes eradicate supercrime and create a utopian Earth. There he witness his Earth-51 counterpart's death and took his role in this reality including marrying this world's Jean Loring.

While there he study much about his Earth-51 counterpart and discover he never became the Atom and acted as a scientist consultant to the Earth-51 Justice League. Also this Ray gifted with the ability to be immune to all kinds of diseases and viruses. Furthermore, the Earth-51 Palmer worked on preventing the deadly Morticoccus Virus, and knowing that in every reality of the Multiverse there is deadly chance that the virus would appear decided to travel the Multiverse and inoculate each inhabitants with his immune system. Realizing the importance of his counterpart's work, Ray carry on Earth-51 Ray's work and travel to different worlds inoculating each denizen of every Earth with a resistance to the Morticoccus Virus.

Unknowable to Ray the Monitors and the Challengers from Beyond were scouring the reformed Multiverse for him as they believe that he maybe the one to prevent a cataclysm known as the Great Disaster. Eventually the Challengers discover him and learns his history on Earth-51. Shortly afterward Bob reveals his intention in killing Ray. With the Challengers' help, Ray escapes but witness the death of his Earth-51 friends and his alternate wife.

Despite what the Challengers were told by the Monitors, Ray reveals to them that it was the Ray Palmer of Earth-51 who was meant to stop the Great Disaster.

After joining the Challengers, teaming up with Jimmy Olsen, Forager, Harley Quinn, Holly Robinson, Mary Marvel, and Firestorm on Apokolips, Ray discovers that Karate Kid was infected with the Morticoccus Virus. Following the damages to the planet by the Pied Piper and Brother Eye, Ray secretly eavesdropped on Monitor Solomon and Darkseid, learning that Darkseid wanted to remake reality and Solomon wanted the Great Disaster to happen. Alerted by this, Ray returned to the others and was pressured into curing Karate Kid.

Ray and the others were then teleported back to the reconstructed Earth-51 and seek advance medical attention from Project Cadmus; however, once they were at Cadmus Karate Kid was already dead.

Ray helped the scientists at Cadmus in finding a cure to the Morticoccus Virus after the virus was released to the world. Despite everything he has done, the Great Disaster prevailed forcing Ray and his friends to return back to their Earth.

After returning to their world, Jimmy Olsen is kidnapped by Mary Marvel, who has been corrupted by Darkseid. Ray hitches a ride from within Jimmy. When Darkseid takes control of Jimmy's powers, Ray locates and shuts down the control sphere inside Jimmy's brain, but is then swarmed by Apokoliptian antibodies. While escaping this onslaught, Ray discovers the "battery" containing the New God spirit energies. Ray removes it from Jimmy's head and shatters it, releasing the energies.

Ray later joins Donna, Kyle, and Forager in their new mission as border guards to the Multiverse, realizing that there is nothing left for him on New Earth anymore. However, Palmer returns to New Earth one more time, upon realizing that his old nemesis Chronos had taken his identity to mislead a young pretender to his identity, Ryan Choi. After helping his successor to once again save Ivy Town, he returns to the Multiverse with a new sense of fulfillment, leaving his town in the hands of a new, capable hero.

During the Final Crisis, Ray returns to New Earth and works with Choi again to aid in the efforts to evacuate the last free humans.

Blackest Night

During the events of the Blackest Night, Ray asks Hawkman to visit his wife Jean Loring's grave to be honored as a fallen member of the community, but Hawkman refuses due to her murdering Sue Dibny. Ray later called Hawkman again, over the phone. Atom is then invited to visit Carter in order to discuss his heartache over his wife which the deceased Carter planned on killing him.

Arriving at Carter's house, he was attacked by the Black Lantern Hawkman and Hawkgirl, and only escaped by miniaturizing himself and hiding in Carter's Black Lantern Ring. Ray did a thorough exploration of the ring, discovering that it was nothing like Hal Jordan's power ring, instead made of dark matter with micro-wormholes sending energy to an unknown source. Jumping out, he helped Hal and Barry Allen fight off the Black Lantern Justice Leaguers, with his compassion attracting the Black Lantern Dibnys. Ralph mocked Ray for still being love with Jean after she killed Sue, but the two Dibny Lanterns were destroyed by the Indigo Tribe, the wielders of the indigo light of compassion, then teleporting the three living Leaguers to the Hall of Justice, where they met up with Firestorm Jason Rusch and Mera. After Indigo-1, leader of the Indigo Tribe, explained that the Black Lanterns were expressions of darkness which considered the living to be invaders, Barry and Hal pointed out that Ralph and Sue had no reaction to each others' attack, leading Ray to conclude that the Black rings were some sort of organic computer that rebooted the body without restoring their essences. Before they could plan a proper counter-attack, the Black Lantern League arrived and attacked, and the Indigo Tribe teleported Hal away, leaving Ray, Barry, and Mera without a means to effectively fight the Black Lanterns. Ray had almost been turned into a Black Lantern by a reanimated Batman but ultimately been protected by an unknown force. Ganthet inducts him into the Indigo Tribe as a deputy for his strong compassion.

Indigo-1 claims that she can teleport the armies of each Lantern Corps onto Earth, if given time to meditate. So, the responsibility falls to Ray to protect her while she does so. Before she enters her trance, she reveals to Ray that the indigo staff and his overwhelming compassion allows him to mimic the other powers of the Lantern Corps; she demonstrates this by temporarily becoming a Red Lantern and vomiting corrosive blood all over an attacking company of Black Lanterns. She then enters her trance, while Ray fights off Black Lanterns Hawkman and Hawkgirl by temporarily becoming an Orange Lantern, loudly proclaiming "I want my friends back!" He then summons two orange energy duplicates of Khufu and Chay-Ara to help him fight off his and Indigo-1's attackers. He is briefly successful. But then Jean shows up to torment him, and she leaps into Indigo-1's ring. Ray follows her. He ends up reliving Sue Dibny's death, and is then attacked by various Black Lantern Morlaidhans, the miniscule race he befriended during his time in the Amazon jungle years before. He fights them off and--summoning the powers of a Green Lantern--destroys Jean. Indigo-1 manages to summon the various armies and thanks Ray for his help. He tells her to keep his involvement in the deployment of the troops a secret, and asks that she help him find a way to legitimately resurrect Hawkman and Hawkgirl.