Child of the Forest and the Ocean
Chapter 10
Two blocks away from the carnival, Zatanna allowed the invisibility spell to drop. Sweat glistened on her forehead in the streetlights that blocked out the stars above them, leaving a blank expanse of midnight blue.
Her breath came out in short shallow gasps. She raised her shaky hand, tucking a strand of her sweat drenched black hair behind her ear, causing her crescent moon earrings to flash in the light.
The moment the invisibility spell dropped, Harry sidestepped to a nearby bush and vomited, the smell of burning flesh and hair still lingering in his nostrils. The image of the skin on Doctor Polaris his hands melting and dripping to the ground like wax played through his mind.
His body shuddered as his stomach clenched painfully rebelling against anything he had eaten that day. When he finally finished emptying the contents of his stomach, Harry leaned against the streetlamp, letting the cool dark metal soothe his aching muscles.
Zatanna placed a hand on his sweat drenched hand. "Are you alright?"
Harry inclined his head. "Yeah, I've just never been in a fight that violent before. I mean injured someone as badly as I did tonight. I mean I've killed before, but the things I've killed have never looked even remotely human. This incident just seems more real since I could sympathize with the face."
He turned to Zatanna, his Emerald eyes not seeing her, but reliving the events of the past hour. "He was burning, but he didn't scream at all. How could someone not scream as they burned? The pain had to have been unbearable." A shudder ran through his body.
Zatanna pushed his broad shoulder.
At her urging, Harry pushed off the streetlamp. He stumbled before regaining his balance.
Together they continued the walk back to Zatanna's house, the click of Zatanna's heels on the concrete mixed with the slapping of Harry's bare feet.
Wind blew around them, tugging at their clothes.
Zatanna shivered rubbing her slender arms for warmth.
Grabbing a flower from a pale concrete flower bed Harry focused on it. At his urging thin green threads sprouted from the bottom of the flour, intertwining and weaving in a complex fashion. In a matter of seconds he was holding a small jacket with the butt of the flower sticking out of the back of the collar.
Focusing a bit of magic into his creation, black began to bleed into the dark green. When the last of the green faded from the jacket he handed it to Zatanna.
Wrapping her slender fingers around the leather like material of the jacket, Zatanna raised an eyebrow as she pulled it on, feeling her skin brush up against the soft lining. "I didn't know you could do that."
"Through your father's teachings," Harry said as they began walking again, "I have learned that I don't need spells or any type of words to channel my magic. I just need one of my elements, earth, plants, or ice. With one of those three, I can do almost anything with magic."
Zatanna stepped closer, leaning on Harry's arm.
Harry moved it, wrapping his arm around her slender waist and pulling her closer to his body.
Resting her head on his shoulder, Zatanna glanced up at him, his face was half hidden in the light of the streetlamps, giving him a dark and mysterious look. "That's impressive."
"What you do with raw magical energy impresses me more. Your magic is more versatile, besides if I am separated from my elements, I am virtually powerless."
They walked up the concrete steps to the Zatara brownstone, Harry's hand trailing along the cool metal of the iron railing.
Stopping at the door, Harry glanced down at himself, realizing his state for the first time. His cheeks burned a bright pink and his body tingled with nerves. This is not how he wanted to return to Giovanni after taking his daughter out on a date. He glanced around, looking for anything he could transform into a shirt, but before he could grab something the front door flew open.
Giovanni or John Zatara stood there, the lights of the kitchen shining against his back, giving his dark outline a white glow.
His purple eyes flicked between them, glowing in the darkness.
Unconsciously, Harry slid 1 foot backwards, preparing to launch himself off the porch.
Before Harry could make his move, Zatara spoke, his voice calm but hard and leaving no room for argument. "Get inside," his gaze flicked to Harry, "both of you."
With that he turned away from the door, they could hear the sounds of his polished leather shoes clicking on the tiles of the kitchen.
Glancing at each other, the two teenagers took a deep breath and stepped into the house.
John led them through the kitchen and into the living room.
Harry flexed his toes against the dark blue carpet, wincing slightly as the warmth flowed back into his skin. He didn't realize how cold it had been out there. Maybe he had been in shock from the fight.
John sat down in a plush red chair, drumming his fingers against the dark wood of its arms.
Not wanting to meet the man's accusatory gaze, Harry allowed his eyes to scan the room.
The Zatara's living room was filled with antique furniture that was all packed with plush red cushions against the dark almost black curved would.
A coffee table sat at his knee, it sharp corners shining in the lamplight coming from two matching end tables on either side of the couch.
The light shining through the glass shades projected the Chinese characters painted on them on the far wall in a deep red color almost like blood.
Despite the tenseness of the situation, Harry wondered if the symbol had any power.
John gestured to the couch, "Sit down."
Both teenagers moved over to the couch, forgoing the matching chair directly across from the older Zatara. Once seated, silence fell in the room again, each ticking of the cuckoo clock mounted on the wall racked up the nerves.
Harry glanced at the muted TV directly across from him, smoking images of the carnival ground flashed across the screen, filling his stomach with dread.
John glanced at Harry. "If I hadn't seen the news, I would be suspicious of your state of dress." He gestured at the TV, "but I did and to be honest I don't know whether to scold you for being reckless, or congratulate you for taking down someone so powerful."
Neither teen said anything, Too nervous that one word would change the tone of the conversation. "What were you to thinking? You could have been killed."
Harry and Zatanna stared straight ahead, their faces blank, but their ears red.
"Well?"
The two teens shared a look.
Finally, Zatanna spoke. "It's not like we planned to fight Doctor Polaris, or went hunting for trouble. He just appeared at the carnival and started smashing things with his gravitational powers." she looked at her father's challengingly. "What were we supposed to do Let him kill innocents?"
Giovanni opened his mouth, but Harry cut him off. "She was amazing sir, just watch."
Raising his hand, dust and grime flew off his body, forming a ring of thin rock in the air. Images flashed through it before settling on Zatanna and Harry running side-by-side through the carnival, waves of white energy smashing the ground around them, filling the room with the sound of explosions and crumbling earth.
The older Zatara watched as Zatanna and Harry worked as a team to take down Doctor Polaris. The vision ended with the two running out of the carnival hand in hand.
As the vision ended, the ring of earth fell to the floor, shattering into six pieces.
Giovanni leaned back in his chair, staring off into space.
After a full minute, he turned to look at the two. "Well Zatanna, it looks like you were right, you are ready to join Young Justice. That is," he looked at Harry, "if Harry here will join with you to watch your back."
Both father and daughter turned to stare at Harry.
Rising to his feet, Harry paced around the room. His eyes swept over the family photos lining the walls, before settling on a picture of a young Zatanna out with Zatara and a blonde woman with purple eyes. Leaning forward, Harry could see that she had the same heart-shaped face as her daughter. Her slender hands rested on a three-year-old Zatanna's shoulders
The long white gown hiding her curvaceous frame pooled around her feet.
Shaking his head, Harry focused on the task at hand. He really didn't want to join Young Justice again, but if it meant he could work with Zatanna he would. However, right now he had more important things to worry about.
Slowly, Harry turned to the father daughter duo and shook his head. "I'm sorry, but until I find out who hurt my mother and why they're after her, I can't join Young Justice."
Gracefully Zatanna climbed to her feet. She strode around the couch and placed her hand on Harry's arm. "That's fine," she said staring into his eyes. "I'll work with you until we find out who attacked your mother."
A smile twitched at the corners of Harry's mouth. He leaned forward resting his forehead against hers. "Thank you," he whispered.
Giovanni cleared his throat, causing both to jump away from each other.
They turned to him. A smile lifted the corners of the older man's lips. "Is there anything else I need to know about?"
Zatanna and Harry resisted the urge to glance at each other, the fact that Doctor Polaris was being controlled by the same demonic entity that killed Jason Woodruw flash through their minds.
"Not that I can think of," Zatanna said staring at her father.
Giovanni inclined his head, "Fine," he turned to Harry, "since I can't stop her from going out and finding trouble. I'm holding you personally responsible for her protection." A pressure settled on Harry shoulders, strong enough to make him feel weak in the knees. 0"If anything happens to my daughter I will be most displeased."
Clenching his jaw, Harry flexed his fingers before nodding stiffly, "Understood sir."
–XX –
The next morning, Harry swung his feet out of bed. They impacted the wooden floor of his room with a loud smack. Wiggling his toes against the cool wood, he rose to his feet. Warm sunlight from his room single window bathed his naked back.
Reaching sideways, he turned the lamp on his bedside table on with two quick clicks. Light shone through its dark blue shade, beating back the shadows.
Flexing his back, he breathed out at the satisfying cracks of his spine while glancing around the room. A dresser set against the wall beside the door, the mirror on top of it reflected the pale curtains of the window and the single ray of sunlight shining through their gap.
Stepping forward, he pulled his closet doors open, wincing at the squeak of their hinges.
Glancing at the floor, his lips twitched as he saw a straight line of scratches worn into the floor in front of the closet. He had to wonder why a man as powerful as Giovanni Zatara didn't fix the cosmetic damage. Maybe he didn't care, maybe he wanted to fix it by hand, or maybe he wasn't good with household magic.
Shaking his head, he ran his barefoot over the rough scratches. As his foot passed over them, smooth unpolished would replace the small white grooves.
Reaching into the closet, he pulled out a sea green T-shirt, jeans, and a matching jacket. Moving over to the dresser, he grabbed a pair of socks folded side-by-side. He never could figure out how his mother rolled them together so neatly.
Within ten minutes, he was dressed. Slipping on a pair of light brown boots, he hopped on 1 foot while opening the door.
Straightening the collar of his jacket, he knelt down and began tying his shoes as the door directly across from his opened.
Straightening up he caught sight of Zatanna standing in the doorway to her room, dark leather pants accentuating the curves of her legs. A pale white T-shirt clung to her upper body, its tight fabric showing off the curves of her breasts.
Slender arms punched through the sleeves of the plant jacket Harry made her the night before, throwing her long dark hair out behind her, her silver half-moon earrings shone in the light.
Purple eyes locked on to Harry, her lips twitched as she caught sight of his shocked face. Stepping forward, her dark boots clicking on the floor she raised her hand and gently closed his mouth. "Be careful, or you'll catch flies."
"What is it with you and black leather?" Harry asked shaking his head.
Zatanna's hands dropped to her waist, her slender fingernails made small indentions in the smooth black fabric. "I'm a magic user. We all have a thing for black." she cocked her head to one side and her red lips twisted. "plus, I make this look good."
Leaning forward the corners of Harry's lips curved upwards. "You certainly do," Harry said close enough that their noses were almost touching. His breath brushed across Zatanna's lips, sending a shiver down her spine.
Zatanna drew back and cleared her throat. "So," she asked while fiddling with one of her half-moon earrings, "where are we going?"
Harry smiled. Zatanna may like to flirt, but she couldn't release pheromones. "Well, with what we learned about Doctor Polaris being controlled, I thought we could go visit him and see if we can find anything else out now that were not being attacked."
"Two problems with that, Zatanna said moving into the kitchen. "Number one, we don't know where he is being held. Besides, it would be heavily guarded."
Leaning against the sink, Harry turned the Spiggetts on. He let the cool water run across his skin for a moment before grabbing it with his mind. Pulling it into his palm, he formed it into a small egg shape. Holding it there, he showed it to Zatanna.
The dark-haired female Homo Magi stared at his palm, her purple eyes wide. Reflected in Harry's palm was not his skin, but the round concrete structure of Stryker's Island prison. She glanced at Harry, "How?"
Absorbing the water into his skin, leaving behind cool dry skin, Harry lowered his hand. "I've been practicing with my magic to see what my limits are. Apparently I can use any water as a looking glass."
Zatanna crossed her arms over her chest, her purple eyes narrowed. "You haven't looked at me in the shower have you?"
Harry's mouth dropped open and his eyebrows shot to his hairline. "What! No of course not," his eyes flicked upwards, "though I can't say the thought hasn't crossed my mind."
Zatanna smacked his shoulder. "You pervert!"
"Hey, I am not a pervert, I'm a guy. We all have those kinds of thoughts. Besides, I didn't act on them, Shouldn't I get a little credit for that?"
Zatanna crossed her arms, turning her nose up in the air. "No, no you don't."
Shaking his head, Harry grabbed an apple from the center of the table. Biting into the fruit, he spoke. "Grab some breakfast and meet me outside I'll show you how were getting to Stryker's Island."
–XX –
Harry and Zatanna stomp down the concrete steps leading to the Zatara's backyard, their hands gliding along the curved metal railing.
A cool breeze swept through the yard, making the leaves of the acorn tree in its center sway back and forth. The clack, clack, of acorns skidding across the concrete path leading to the street caressed their ears.
Walking down the path, Harry scooped an acorn up off the ground. Stepping off the path he walked a few feet away then gestured to Zatanna, "Come on."
Sticking her hands inside the soft material of her pockets, Zatanna moved towards him, Her long dark hair swayed out behind her in the morning breeze. "So, how are we going to get to Stryker's Island prison from here," she gestured around her.
"With this," Harry held up the acorn pinched between his middle and pointer fingers.
A dark eyebrow arched. "An acorn really?" The Raven haired beauty asked in a deadpanned voice.
"Trust me, this is all we'll need."
"I don't know after finding out what you can do with water."
"I never looked at you in the shower!"
Harry blew out a breath as he ran a hand through his dark hair. He beckoned to her with his left hand, curling his fingers. "Come on, we don't have all day."
Boots gliding across the grass Zatanna moved to him.
Wrapping an arm around the Raven haired beauty, Harry held the acorn above their heads. Forcing a bit of his will into the small not, thick brown vines the size of two by fours exploded from the ground, wrapping around them, forming a larger version of the seed clutched in his hand.
Zatanna's purple eyes shone in the sunlight. "What are you doing?"
"People with a connection to the green can travel through it. However, unlike Swamp thing, or Jason Woodruw, I'm not made of plants, so I must encase myself in a cocoon of some type for instantaneous travel."
The giant acorn booked upward as the ground seemed to swell. A hole opened beneath the giant nut, causing it to fall into the darkness within.
Zatanna's stomach dropped as they fell in the hole. She shot forward, wrapping her arms around Harry. Smiling, he wrapped his arms around her willing glowing green moss to grow on the inside of the acorn, casting their features in shadows.
Glancing up at him, the left side of her face half hidden in shadows Zatanna asked, "How do you know where we're going?"
"I have Stryker's Island prison firmly fixed in my mind, the green will do the rest," Harry answered resting his chin atop her head.
–XX –
Harry's stomach lurched as a rising sensation filled his body.
Zatanna tightened her grip around him.
"It's alright, We've just arrived at the prison."
Zatanna drew back, her face a light pink in the pale green light of the fungus surrounding them. "Sorry, I'm not used to traveling this way."
"It's alright," he placed a hand on her arm, "I like having you in my arms."
Zatanna leaned forward, her lips twisting into a smirk, "Do you now."
Clearing his throat, Harry looked off to the side. "Listen when we break ground, can you put an invisibility spell around us?"
Zatanna's smirk fell away replaced by a serious expression. Her purple eyes hardened. "I can do that, but I can only hold it for so long. Definitely not the entire time we're in the prison."
"Don't worry. You won't have to hold it for that long."
–XX –
Stryker's Island prison reminded Harry of a medieval castle. It sat directly in the middle of the island, for large 30 foot stone walls with a tower set into each wall proudly decorated the island. A strange half circle covered the left half of the prison, making sure no one could attack the prison from above.
Catwalks stretched from wall-to-wall, crisscrossing in the center, their silver colored metal flashing in the sunlight. Guards in dark combat fatigues strode along the balconies. Their heads angled downward, their dark vizers reflecting the sunlight.
Hands covered in dark gloves caressed automatic rifles, the footsteps of thick boots reverberated around the wide open space below the catwalk.
Hundreds of prisoners in orange jumpsuits gazed up the walls, eyeing the guards with evil intent, waiting for them to show any kind of weakness.
Harry pointed to the base of the front right tower, causing the water in his palm to ripple. "There's a vent in the center of this tower that leads to the ventilation system. Once we get in there, I'll put everyone inside the prison to sleep."
"Okay, but the cameras will still see us moving around. Everyone will know we were inside."
Harry didn't answer, his emerald eyes were focused on the guards patrolling the perimeter of the prison.
The egg lurched to a stop, sending both occupants falling sideways.
"We're now a foot beneath the surface, It's show time."
–XX –
The dirt of Stryker's Island cracked open, minuscule bits of sand falling away as the determined piece of foliage punch through the earth. Two leaves sprouted from the middle of the dark green stem. The tear -shaped blue bulb swiveled around like an eye.
In his hiding spot beneath the earth, Harry stood with his eyes closed. In his mind's eye he could see through the flower as it swiveled around.
With a touch of will, he made the flower pauses a guard past, his boots crunching the earth. With a flick of his finger, a thin thorn shot from the center of the bulb stabbing into skintight dark fabric covering the guard's neck.
Grunting, the guards seized up toppling backwards. He hit the ground with a thump, the earth beneath him transforming into sand and swallowing him up.
Harry glanced up, a hole opened up in his hiding place. Dirk reigned in followed shortly after by a heavy shadow that hit the bottom of the giant acorn with a thud.
Orange light flared to life inside the confined space. Zatanna knelt down, a fireball hovering an inch above her palm. "Is he dead?"
"No, he's just sleeping and dost with a mild paralytic agent."
"We've got an unconscious guard, now what are we going to do?"
Watch," reaching out with his mind, Harry grabbed the dirt falling through the softball sized hole in the roof. Staring at the guard, taking in every detail of his features, he pulled the dirt towards him, molding it to his body like a second skin.
Zatanna watched as a copy of the guard formed in front of her, made of dark brown earth.
"Impressive, but I don't think it's going to fool anyone."
No sooner had she finished speaking than the skin of the earth copy gained color. The dark brown combat fatigues turned black, and the face shield of the once earth helmet now reflected the light of a fireball.
"You were saying."
Zatanna jumped, Harry's voice was now deeper with a slight accent.
"I stand corrected."
Closing her eyes, Zatanna's form shifted. Her long dark hair shimmered into bright blonde. Her tight leathers thickened into black combat fatigues. Her eyes snapped open, now shining a light blue. Tapping her boot on the floor she stretched out her hand, red energy in the shape of a helmet crawled around her fingers before becoming a solid copy.
With practiced ease, she formed her hair into a knot at the back of her head and slipped on her helmet.
"Okay, now I'm impressed."
"As you should be."
–XX –
Salty sea air filled their lungs as they pulled themselves free of the earth, the whole around them closing as they pulled their feet free. For a moment, both reflexively closed their eyes, enjoying the sound of the sea crashing upon the shore after so long underground.
Zatanna glanced at the slight mound of upturned earth where the guard was hidden. "Are you sure he's going to be okay in their?"
"He'll be fine, the moss covering the walls releases oxygen."
Walking over to the front right wall, Harry looked up. Sunlight reflected in his dark viser. Jabbing at the wall, his fingers sank in like putty. With a grunt, he began climbing. Each time he would pull his hand free the holes his fingers or feet made would close shut, leaving behind smooth concrete.
Stopping at the vent, Harry glanced at the floating Zatanna behind him. "I should've probably asked this before, but is the invisibility spell holding?"
"Yeah we're fine," Zatanna said, a slight pant at the end of her words.
Turning back to the vent, Harry concentrated on the screws holding it in place. No matter what Zatanna said, holding flight and an invisibility spell seem to be taking a lot out of her.
Slowly, the screws holding the vent in-place began to turn. Digging his knees and feet into the concrete, Harry allowed the last screws to fall into his waiting palm. Clutching the screws in his hand, he removed the vent with his free hand. Leaning back, he handed both the screws and the vent to Zatanna.
"Can you spell these too returned to their proper positions once we're in the duct?"
Zatanna nodded, her breath coming out in heavy pants, beads of sweat ran down both sides of her face to drip off her chin.
With an effort of will, the now blonde haired beauty made the screws and vent hover in the air beside her, ignoring the headache building in her forehead.
Slipping inside, Harry offered his hand to Zatanna. Wrapping her slender fingers in his larger hand, he pulled her inside the vent, curling a little to give her enough space to fit inside.
The metal grate fitted into place behind her with a metallic bump. If they listen closely they could hear the screws moving back into place.
Zatanna leaned against the wall of the vent, her chest heaving, and her breath coming out in shallow pants.
"Are you alright?" Harry asked, his eyes flicking down to her rapidly rising and falling chest.
"I'm fine I just need a minute," Zatanna panted, "out of curiosity, have you planned on a way for us to get out of here?"
"Shit!"
"Quiet laughter echoed around the vent, "Don't worry, as long as I don't have to do any heavy lifting I should be able to teleport us out of here."
Harry's shoulders relaxed and he sighed in relief, "Good."
A moment of silence fell between them, where they both just leaned against the walls of the duct.
Zatanna glanced out of the vent. "Once we leave, how is that guy going to get out?"
"The stuff he's been injected with will keep him out for about three hours, once that timeframe is over, the acorn will push him to the surface and decay. Are you ready to go?"
Zatanna nodded and Harry leaned forward.
Quick as a flash, Zatanna smacked him upside the head.
"Ow, what was that for?"
"That was for staring at my chest, now get moving."
Grumbling Harry began crawling through the duct, the scent of mold filling his lungs with each breath. At first it was very hard to be quiet, if they set there need down with too much force it would cause a loud bang to the duct, causing them to pause and listen.
However, after about fifteen minutes they had learned to control how much force they put into their limbs.
"Which way?" Zatanna asked as they stopped at an intersection leading off to the right and left.
"Hang on a minute," closing his eyes, Harry reached out with his senses. Wherever they would be keeping Doctor Polaris, it would have to be somewhere hot, meaning he should be able to feel the increasing heat through the earth.
In his mind's eye a three-dimensional representation of the vent appeared showing the way. His mind spread in the two directions at once, causing a searing pain in the center of his forehead. Ignoring it, he followed both directions noticing how the vent on the left was growing steadily warmer.
As the pain in his head increased, he cut the connection before he reached the heat source and nodded to the left, "This way."
However, Harry didn't move.
"Okay, get a move on. We're on a time limit remember?"
"Now that we know Polaris's location, I think it's time for me to put the guards to sleep. I need you to hold your breath until I tell you otherwise."
Seeing Zatanna nod out of the corner of his eye, Harry placed both hands in either vent and closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he exhaled. Pink fog exploded from his mouth flooding both vents with a push of his will.
Reaching out with his mind, he took notice of each guard's movement through the earth. His headache returned full force, pulsing in his forehead like a heartbeat. Gritting his teeth he guided his toxic gas in the direction of the guards, even as it felt like needles stabbed into his eyes.
One by one, the guards began to fall, but even as the last one fell, he kept exhaling, taking in more air through his skin into he was absolutely sure they would stay asleep.
After six minutes of secreting sleeping gas, Harry stopped. His chest heaved and sweat dripped off the bottom of his chin. Leaning sideways, he rested his head against the cool metal of the duct, hoping it would sooth the throbbing pain in his skull.
Waiting another five minutes, he nodded to Zatanna. "it's okay to breathe now."
Zatanna exhaled.
"I am impressed. I don't know many people who can hold their breath for eleven minutes."
Zatanna pinked. "I was actually using a filtering spell."
Harry arched an eyebrow, a smirk splitting his face. "Oh, so you were trying to impress me."
Zatanna glared at him. "Now is not the time to stroke your ego. Now get moving."
Smirk still on his face, Harry nodded. "Yes ma'am."
Following the heat signal still radiating within his mind, Harry led the way through the vent. Even with their quietest movements, the shuffling still echoed around them like they were moving inside a bell.
Reaching a dead end, Harry could see guards in black combat fatigues sprawled out on the floor through the vent to his left. "It's time to put the invisibility spell backup."
With a few quick whispered words, the air around him shimmered and Zatanna nodded. "Alright I've covered us and an invisibility spell and shielded the vent in a minor allusion. For the next few minutes nothing will look out of place here."
Placing his hand on the vent, Harry willed the screws to twist themselves out. A metallic tinkling on the concrete floor below them signified the screws hitting the ground. Pushing the vent, he winced as it banged into the floor.
Dropping to the floor, his boots lightly scuffed on the concrete.
"Well I certainly hope my illusion hid that sound."
Harry glanced around him. Metal cells sealed shut with gleaming metal bars lined the walls on either side of him, the occupants slumped to the floor, their chest slowly rising and falling beneath their orange jumpsuits. He glanced at the heavy metal door with a large keypad set into its left side.
"It couldn't be helped. I haven't got enough finesse to catch the metal when I'm not standing directly in front of it."
Moving to the door, Harry stared at the keypad set into it. He could use his power over metal to bend the mechanisms and break the inside, but he was trying to leave is little evidence that he was here as possible.
Closing his eyes, he reached out to the nearest guard with his mind. For a moment, he was no longer Harry Isley. He was security guard Joe Cruz. His hand glided across the keyboard with the ease of long practice, typing in deeply memorized numbers.
When the beep of the last number faded away, Harry opened his eyes. He glanced at the security guard laying 2 feet away from him, "Thanks Joe." He pressed enter, loud clicks echoed down the hallway. Steam billowed out from around the edges of the doors as pressure locks disengaged. The door slowly swung open.
Heat was the first thing to hit Harry, a heat so strong that it dried his bones in a moment and made his mouth feel like sandpaper. Sweat ran down either side of his forehead and it took concentration for his helmet not to become muddy.
Stepping forward, he peered into the room. Large vents made up the walls. Heat flooded into the room through the vents. A drop of sweat fell from his chin, turning to steam before it hit the floor. Solar lamps added to the heat and filled the room with an almost unbearable bright light.
In the center of the room, lying on a metal table covered with a thin mattress lay the room's only occupant. Doctor Polaris lay in the center of the room, his Harry muscular chest slowly rising and falling. Sweat glistened on his body and drenched his sheets.
Tubes came up from the floor, connecting to both arms. Another tube descended from the ceiling, flowing into a mask that covered the villain's nose and mouth.
Moving to the end of the bed, Harry grabbed a clipboard and began rifling through the dry crackly pages.
"How could any human do this to another?" Zatanna asked entering the room, her footsteps echoing off the smooth metal floor. She glanced up at the cylindrical solar lights mounted into the ceiling. "This can't be humane."
"Fear is a strong motivator, it says here they're keeping him sedated and the room at a constant 200°." Harry's eyes flicked to the tubes going into his arms. "To keep him hydrated their constantly pumping fluids and food into his body, along with whatever they're using to keep him knocked out. I don't recognize the name of that."
Zatanna leaned forward, her eyes sweeping over his left hand where two of his fingers were melted together. Flicking to his face, she grimaced at the left side of it. He was bald on that side, with still healing burns glistening at his scalp.
His eyelids had melted together over an empty socket. Skin dribbled down his face like wax, fusing one side of his mouth together.
Zatanna turned away, feeling bile rise in her throat. She couldn't believe she had caused such damage to another human being. Even if he was a villain, he didn't deserve this.
Setting the clipboard back into its metal holder, Harry strode around the bed. With a shaky hand, he placed two fingers on Doctor Polaris his forehead, vowing to himself to fix the damage he had done to the man if he had time.
Closing his eyes, he gently began sorting through Doctor Polaris his memories until he found what he was looking for.
–XX –
Harry found himself floating in a cylindrical tube. Bright white lights shone from somewhere above him, reflecting off the metal walls, making it so bright that he was almost blind.
After a few minutes, he managed to see a square box floating before him, suspended in the air by a cable attached to the center of its top and bottom.
Immediately after catching side of the box, a shiver ran down his spine. His breath came out in short shallow gasps and beads of sweat began to pool on his skin. Darkness began to creep in at the edges of his vision.
Closing his eyes, he concentrated, reminding himself that he was not trapped. He was just in Doctor Polaris's mind. He could leave anytime he wanted.
When his heart rate slowed to normal, he opened his eyes.
The moment he did, a woman with rich almost red brown hair appeared floating before the box. Her red eyes narrowed to slits against the bright light surrounding her.
With a wave of her hand, the door exploded from the small box, causing Doctor Polaris to fall forward.
The door slamming into the ground somewhere below reverberated around them, echoing off the metal walls.
Cradling Doctor Polaris against the soft fabric of her red gown, the woman stroked his hair tenderly with a delicate hand, running her manicured fingernails through his hair. "Neil, wake up I have a job for you."
The doctor's blue eyes fluttered open. "Who are you?" He asked in a raspy voice.
"I am Tala, and you and I have work to do…"
"Harry!"
Harry's head snapped around, Zatanna's voice coming from somewhere far away.
"Harry! You need to come back."
Glancing at Tala and Doctor Polaris, Harry's hands clenched into fists, he really wanted to stay, but there was desperation in Zatanna's voice.
Closing his eyes, he allowed himself to sink back into reality.
–XX –
Opening his eyes, Harry turned to Zatanna, ignoring the sweat drenching his body. "What's wrong?"
Tucking her helmet under her arm, Zatanna wiped the sweat from her brow. "Somehow Young Justice knows where here, Garth contacted me telepathically. Creatures have attacked Metropolis, they need our help."
"Alright, we'll go in a minute." Turning back to Doctor Polaris, Harry willed the sweat to flow off his body and cover the unconscious Doctor like a second skin. Closing his eyes, he imagined how the doctor's body looked before their battle.
He felt the water shift under his touch. In his mind's eye he could see the water healing the Doctor, regenerating the skin on his scalp, healing the melted part of his eye and hand, before finally restoring the hair in his former bald spot.
Feeling the water evaporate away, he opened his eyes. The doctor was back in pristine condition. Both eyes were now closed as he rested peacefully. His muscular chest rose and fell, his fingers flexed, even unconscious testing his new fingers.
A full head of dark hair splayed out on the pillow beneath his head.
Nodding to himself, Harry turned to Zatanna. "We can go now."
"You do good work."
"Just writing a wrong that should've never been done."
With a muttered word, Harry couldn't quite make out, the Raven haired beauty teleported them away in a flash of purple light.