In 2002 Austen took part in writing a Marvel book with Bruce Jones titled "The Call of Duty 911", a short-lived Marvel Comics series featuring firefighters and emergency service workers dealing with paranormal phenomena in the Marvel Universe, conceived in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks as a way to convey the heroism of New York City firemen as real life superheroes. Austen wrote "Call of Duty: The Brotherhood" #1–6, and "Call of Duty: The Wagon" #1–4, and a short run on an ongoing series in 2002–2003 that lasted four issues.