23
Khalid Ben-Hassin still writhed in madness as Johnny Sorrow sat down the Helmet of Nabu in order to deal with the arriving JSA All Stars. As soon Khalid's eyes spotted the gleaming helmet, he became just cognizant enough to begin a belly crawl towards the prize the helmet represented. Some distance away, the Phantom Stranger lay stretched out in a state of catatonia. With the JSA All Stars on the scene, Gentleman Ghost and the pair of Chaos Avatars dropped Madame Xanadu's precious tarot cards and abandoned her. Her arm reflexively twitched to where her hand could make contact with the deck and her hand unconsciously grasped it and then she drew the deck in to clutch it to her chest.
As Zatanna aided Amethyst and Jennifer Morgan in their mutual struggle against Frederic Vaux, the Soul Thief, she realized neither woman intended on taking Vaux prisoner. And since Soul Thief was renowned for escaping from nether realms, that left straight out killing him and letting his own cursed soul descend to wherever it was intended to ultimately go. And that was an option Zee couldn't condone.
Amethyst's raw power was unrefined and barely controlled. Her destructive hex bolts vaporized any and all vampires between the Justice League Dark trio and Vaux. Jennifer possessed the finite control Princess Amara lacked but her spells were no less deadly. Zatanna sensed something had gone terribly awry but it wasn't until she caught whiff of a reverse magic similar to hers that she cried out an alarm.
But it was too late for Jennifer and Amethyst had each unleashed their full might at Soul Thief. And his reversal spell channeled their power and altered it so that it was life infusing rather than destroying. And with their power added to his considerable might, he leveled them.
Zatanna was the first back on her feet. She knew how to defeat Vaux but didn't know if she had the capacity to weave that kind of spell. Using a whisper spell she instructed Amethyst and Jennifer to essentially reverse the polarity of their efforts. In addition Zatanna augmented his reverse spell.
Nightmaster and Frankenstein's creature discovered that it was true the one thing a vampire couldn't regenerate was its head. But it could be reattached as long as the vampire had fresh human blood to dine upon to fuel the healing process. Fortunately, it was devilishly difficult to actually drink blood with a severed neck.
So the pair used their swords to maximum effect while Blue Devil stood with them on the third corner of their pyramidal formation. Blue Devil's pitchfork incinerated a half dozen vampires at a time. And as the victims' companions quickly discovered, there was no extinguishing hellfire.
Enchantress' magic couldn't directly harm the living. But vampires were labeled the "undead" for a reason. They were simply walking, talking, blood guzzling corpses without benefit of souls. So Enchantress felt free to destroy the obstacles in her path to Felix Faust and Mary Seward. And once she reached them, she wouldn't hold back one iota of her true power to vanquish them.
Despite the witch's supernaturally young appearance, Enchantress was really over six thousand years old. She'd learned to cheat death by bonding to human women through the centuries. And each century, she learned new magics and gained access to ever greater storehouses of mystical power. June Moone was her current bond mate and although June was a practicing Wiccan she'd brought no intrinsic knowledge into the pairing. But her sense of morality balanced out Enchantress' darker impulses. Except when she tapped into her full reserves.
Pandora was also carving her way towards Mary and Faust. Whereas they greatly underestimated the Enchantress, they had no such reservations regarding Pandora. Every mystic knew Pandora had opened a skull shaped box in 6000 BCE and unleashed the Seven Deadly Sins upon the world. Cursed to be immortal and wear her searing facial scars, Pandora had wandered through the millennia trying to atone for her mistake and rein in the Sins.
When the Wizard's Council led by Nabu, Mist, and Shazam captured the Seven Sins, Pandora expected to be released from her purgatory. But her curse had been created by a forum of the Council and it would require a unanimous effort of the council to release her. Sadly, only Mist, Nabu, and Shazam survived the final conflict against the Seven Deadly Sins. Without the others, they were powerless to free Pandora.
So Pandora set about trying to rectify the damage the Seven Sins had wrought upon the world. As the one they called "mother", Pandora still felt responsible. And the corruption of the human spirit was absolute. Pandora's efforts had led her to the Justice League Dark and she finally had organized allies in her crusade besides her armorer who'd reincarnated throughout the millennia and crafted specialized weapons for her throughout each century.
Pandora found herself close enough to Faust and Mary to see what they were doing. She recognized the ritual and knew Drakul wouldn't survive it. And the fallen Andrew Bennett would only survive because Mary had effectively become his sire even as he was hers.
Pandora was more than half convinced to allow Faust to finish. Then killing Mary would end the conflict once and for all. And given Enchantress' obvious intent, it wouldn't take much to sway her to go along with Pandora's plan.
Constantine threw out ideas of how to fight the surrounding vampire horde as he, Ragman, Nightmare Nurse, Klarion, Teekl, Zauriel, Kid Eternity, and the champions and heroes from Earth's history that Kid Eternity had brought into the conflict fought vampire foot soldiers. At first they'd been a secondary event after defending Mary, Queen of Blood, from Pandora and Enchantress but they were quickly elevating themselves on the priority list.
But the arrival of the JSA All Stars also changed the vampires' perspective. But Mary's other allies, the Injustice Society and the Chaos Agents, confronted the All Stars first as the vampires loomed large in the background. If the super villains were to fail, then the vampire army stood ready to take their place.
Sentinel brought Wildcat, Jay Garrick the original Flash, and Dr. Mid-Nite up against Johnny Sorrow. Sorrow immediately began using magic against the foursome but Sentinel's own magic power ring guarded them against it. So Sorrow resorted to removing his mask, an event no power ring could guard against.
But Dr. Mid-Nite's blackout bomb obscured everyone's vision in inky darkness. And the side effect of taking off his mask was that Johnny became tangible. So as Dr. Mid-Nite guided Wildcat and Jay in, Sorrow felt every blow they landed upon him. Panicking, Johnny used a magic wave to repulse the All Stars out of the blackout area.
Then he quickly reaffixed his mask and opened a portal to the Subtle Realms. Slipping through it, he wondered when he would encounter Mary Marvel again. The inevitability of it was a delicious irony.
Dr. Mid-Nite reentered the bomb's radius again but quickly exited it even as it began to dissipate, "Sorrow's gone."
"He musta ran like a headless chicken," Wildcat opined.
Sentinel scanned the area with his ring, "He definitely left this dimension. I think it's safe to assume where he went."
"Good riddance," Jay remarked, "He'll be back all too soon as it is."
"Amen, brother," Wildcat clapped Jay's back.
"I hate to bring this up, but we're surrounded," Dr. Mid-Nite alerted them to the encroaching vampire army.
"Not for long," Sentinel promised.
Captain Marvel Jr.'s battle against Etrigan ended as Jason Blood returned the demon to his banishment and took his place once again. Junior swooped in and Jason rode his back as the Marvel took directions on how to get to the House of Mystery's present location.
Anna Fortune came to Tattooed Man's aid, "Stand back and rest for a moment. You'll be called back into the fray momentarily."
Anna slipped a spell casing into her arm cannon's breach and the Wizard sneered, "Shouldn't you have arrived by dirigible?"
"Try laughing this off," Anna fired the cannon at Wizard.
A gelatinous blob enveloped the Wizard and its enzymes ate away at his flesh and clothing. Shrieks could be heard emitting from the blob. Anna turned to Mark Richards.
"Get ready for it," she suggested, "And tell me what you can do before he breaks free. For he shall and swiftly too."
Mark explained the nature of his tattoos and how he used them to avenge his son's death. Anna approved, "You'll have your moment here as well. Now, he will be free within seconds."
The gelatin melted and the Wizard looked a ragged as he felt, "I'll kill you for that."
"Tosh," Anna scolded him, "You try and try yet you always fail. What's different about now?"
"This!" Wizard screamed as he aimed his wand at the mismatched pair and unloaded a killing hex.
Anna erected a shield to slow the caustic wave down even as she slipped another spell casing out of her bandolier, "Do hurry and distract the lout while I deal with this menace."
Tattooed Man wondered just where the hell Anna came from as his tattoos took on a life of their own and attacked the Wizard. She was plainly Southern but even when he was in the military and it was full of Southern men and women, none spoke like Anna did. She was something out of a historical novel.
"That's it, just a second longer," Anna urged Tattooed Man as she unscrewed the shell off of the casing.
"What do you think I'm doing?" Mark gritted his teeth in concentration.
Anna's spell casing funneled all of the Wizard's powerful spell into it and then she added a few of her own before screwing the spell casing back together. Then she reloaded her arm cannon, "Assistance has arrived."
She fired the casing and the Wizard's own deadly spell amplified a hundred times over ravaged him. But he managed to put up a vigorous enough defense to live. Anna strode over to his fallen form as she reloaded her cannon once again. This time the casing erected a prison around Wizard.
"Thanks," Mark said gratefully.
"We're not finished quite yet," Anna warned him, "I do believe someone believes we are now prey."
Tattooed Man saw the vampires gathering around them, "I guess these suckers don't know when they're beat."
"Indeed," Anna chuckled, "Shall we teach them the error of their ways and then be off to new mischief?"
Tattooed Man didn't have a clue as to what Anna had in mind. And he didn't mind a bit.
Jesse Quick met up with Cheshire in the distance, "One of the Justice League Dark members told us your group was fighting the Injustice Society beside them."
"We've been paid enough to," Cheshire brushed it off, "Rival may be coming for me with revenge in mind."
"Too late," Jesse streaked off to intercept the original Reverse Flash.
Sliding beneath Rival in a classic soccer move from her youth, Jesse took his legs out from underneath him. Then she scrambled to her feet before he could get traction. Thwacking the liberty bell belt buckle she wore, cast from the same mold as the actual Liberty Bell, it resonated within Jesse's body and her adrenal glands began to flow to superhuman levels giving her enhanced strength and reflexes even further than the Speed Force already did.
Rival saw her confidence and mistook it for bravado. Rushing at her at hundreds of feet per second, he was met by her answering right cross before he could respond. Even Rival's Speed Force bolstered molecular structure, adapted for momentum, kinetic force, and friction, couldn't shrug off Jesse's blow.
Rival marveled that while he comprehended fractions of seconds, she was moving even faster than he could react. And the sheer force of her blow broke his jaw. His saucer-like hat flew hundreds of feet away as he staggered.
Wildly careening away for Jesse, he panicked as she was suddenly standing before him as he righted himself. And she executed a series of expert punches. Rival's jaw blinded him with pain and he threatened to go down for the count on numerous occasions but some strength of will kept him upright.
Her last blow dislocated Rival's broken jaw the point it hung lopsided. The pain was so severe it caused him to pass out. Jesse checked his vitals before returning to a rather amused Cheshire.
"He shouldn't be much trouble for a while," Jesse predicted.
"I can assure that," Cheshire drew the sword that hung from her hip.
"If he dies, I'll make certain you finally stand trial for murder. Even if I have to scour this entire planet," Jesse promised.
"Save it for someone who cares," Cheshire laughed at her.
"You obviously care about something or someone, or you wouldn't be fighting these vampires," Jesse guessed, "So imagine them, or it, living without you from now on."
Jesse streaked off, headed for the thick of the battle, while Cheshire pondered her parting words. She thought of Lian again and her asshole father who was obviously high on something. Roy Harper had pledged to Cheshire he'd never touch heroin again. But since he'd joined the Titans he'd become increasingly withdrawn. Now she knew why.
"Here we are again," Sand ruefully observed.
"For the very last time, I assure you," Geo-Mancer promised.
He struck first, opening up a sinkhole beneath Sand as well as throwing a mountainous wave of dirt and bedrock at the All Star. Sand simply shifted to his silicate form and filtered through the disturbance. When Geo-Mancer finished, Sand still stood in the very same spot.
"Let's try something new, shall we?" Sand offered.
Geo-Mancer lashed out again…but nothing happened. Sand counteracted the effort so quickly and completely it was as if Geo-Mancer's powers had utterly failed. And that rattled him.
Panicking, Geo-Mancer threw everything he had into his efforts. And the ground did occasionally ripple but nothing on the scale of what he'd intended. But Geo-Mancer was so utterly focused on the earth beneath him, he failed to notice the fact Sand had slowly and discreetly been approaching him the entire time.
And when he finally took note of that fact, Sand had his gas gun ready to use. Wesley Dodd, the original Sandman, had been Sand's mentor back when Sandy Hawkins had been the Sandman's sidekick, Sandy the Golden Boy. Wesley had left everything to Sand. Including his old gas gun and mask.
Sand had developers redesign the gun into a more effective model and adjust the gas mask into something more comfortable. So Geo-Mancer was knocked out by a revolutionary gun with a advanced formula gas that would knock an average person out for sixty minutes. Sand set the timer on his watch because he fully intended to gas Geo-Mancer again if he had to.
The approaching vampires posed no threat to Sand. He had been transformed into a silicon life form who could take on human appearance. But he decided to let them find that out the hard way.
Hourman had taken Miraclo as Sentinel lowered the All Stars into the fray. He had less than sixty minutes left to the dose now. While Rick Tyler appreciated Pat Dugan's wanting to honor his fallen partner, the Star Spangled Kid, the way Courtney had when she adopted the name before becoming Stargirl, he couldn't fathom giving a multivector/multiplatform vehicle a cumbersome name like the Star Spangled Racer. It was embarrassing for God's sake.
But the sight of Condor evaporated any such considerations from Hourman's mind. The effects Miraclo had on solidifying muscle density and bone structure on a molecular level is all that saved Hourman from losing his head on Condor's first strike. Then the Chaos Avatar began throwing wild punches.
Hourman effectively blocked most of them and eventually responded with an uppercut that took Condor off of his feet. Condor smiled as he rose, "That's it, Daddy's Boy. Keep fighting. It'll make tearing you apart that much sweeter."
Hourman went on the offensive before Condor made good on his threat. Condor didn't even try and defend himself. It was only his talon laden swipe that drove Hourman back.
Hourman had spent hours sparring with Hawk. And it was easy to see that Condor was even more powerful and more than a little psychotic. He was more like a dozen insane Hawks all blended together.
Hourman suddenly whished Jesse was with him and hadn't darted off. The husband and wife had practiced joint takedowns just for occasions like this. And then a red and yellow blur stirred up a wind current and Condor was knocked off of his feet again. The blur came to rest in front of Hourman and Jesse grinned.
"Admit it, you're happy to see me," she teased.
"Terribly," Hourman confessed, "But we really don't have time for a proper reunion."
"It's not like I was gone for a week, Rick," Jesse scolded him.
"Felt that way to me," Hourman shared.
"Aw, you say the nicest things during a fight," then she thought about it, "Why is that?"
"Later," he cajoled her into action. Hourman directly confronted Condor while Jesse engaged in high speed skirmish attacks that battered Condor and threw him off balance so Hourman could work on him. Condor never even mounted a defense. Finally he just stood swaying with a glassy look in his eyes.
"Is he even with us?" Jesse asked.
"Let's find out," Hourman delivered one last right cross that toppled Condor. He grinned as he turned to Jesse, "Nope."
"Show off," she accused.
"You're just jealous because you didn't think of it first," Hourman teased her.
"You, sir, know me far too well," Jesse smirked.
"I'd say we cuff him except we're going to be busy," Hourman warned her.
Jesse looked around at the milling vampires, "I see your point. But still…"
Jesse slapped a pair of tritanium handcuffs on Condor before Hourman could even blink, "All taken care of. Now for our fanged friends here."
Atom Smasher had reduced his height to only ten feet tall when he ran into Killer Wasp and Swallow. The first thing he noticed was how disgusted Swallow seemed with her supposed working partner. Still Atom Smasher was appalled on general principle.
"You guys are seriously gonna side with vampires over humanity?" he had to ask.
"They pay a helluva a lot better," Killer Wasp took flight, "Besides, I gotta score to settle with you JSA types."
Killer Wasp unloaded a bolt of his bioelectric sting and it staggered Atom Smasher. So Al doubled his height as he swatted away at Killer Wasp. The Injustice Society member laughed as he simply flew further out of reach.
Swallow came at Atom Smasher with a flying kick to the gut that doubled him over. Coughing, he simply warned her, "Stay out of this. It isn't your fight."
"Why? Because I'm a girl?" Swallow was instantly angered by that notion.
"No, because you don't seem like the stone cold killer type," Atom Smasher explained, "Now, if you'll excuse me…"
Atom Smasher doubled his height again as he threw a backhand that smacked Killer Wasp out of the air. But he was airborne again before Al could step on him. They continued their game of cat and mouse while Swallow looked on.
"I could send you wherever you wish to go," Anna offered from behind Swallow, "Simply name a place and you'll be there."
Swallow spun to confront the Agent of Order, "Why?"
"Because you look like you want an out," Anna said simply.
Swallow considered the offer before deciding, "Washington DC."
"Hawk and Dove's backyard," Anna was amused, "Now why would you want to go there?"
"Because I have unfinished business with Dove and it's none of yours," Swallow retorted sharply.
"I suppose you do after all," Anna conceded. Anna snapped her fingers and silver flames consumed Swallow until she found herself in her desired location. Anna watched Atom Smasher in action, "Just a little to your left, Albert."
Whether Atom Smasher truly heard her or not would be a matter of conjecture but he did shift to his left and clapped his hands around Killer Wasp. The villain fluttered to the ground where Atom Smasher drove him further into the dirt with his boot. Then Atom Smasher decreased his height to his natural stature.
"Allow me, sirrah," Anna happily offered as she conjured magical manacles that would bind both Killer Wasp's wings and hands to prevent flying and his "sting".
"I thought you were busy," Atom Smasher couldn't keep the delight out of his voice.
"I'm never too busy for you," Anna promised.
Al realized then that Anna had done more than profess her love for him. She'd fully committed as well. It was a prospect that was both exciting and terrifying. After his years' long debacle of a relationship with Courtney Whitmore, to have someone so vivacious simply declaring she was his in every way made his heart melt and his brain woozy.
"I like this side of you," he admitted, "It also scares the hell out of me."
"And me as well," Anna had to confess, "But for you I'm willing to risk it all."
"Speaking of risks…" Atom Smasher began to say.
"Unfortunately now is not an opportune time to discuss personal matters," Anna warned him, "Behold, we have unwanted company."
He looked around and saw the vampires converging on them from three sides, "Back away slowly."
"To where, pray tell?" Anna wondered.
Atom Smasher looked behind them to see they were cut off, "Okay, now we fight for our lives."
"Was it ever thus?" Anna quipped.
"I guess not," Atom Smasher began to grow. And he didn't stop until he towered over the field of battle.
"Show off," Anna mused. Then she began throwing immolating spells and realized there wasn't anywhere else she'd rather be.
Osprey used his talons to try and gut Commander Steel. But while Commander Steel's steel mesh uniform was torn and his synthetic flesh beneath it, his carbon fiber muscles were barely scratched. Osprey was stunned into disbelief.
"Impossible," he said.
"So's this," Commander Steel broke the Avatar's nose with a single punch.
Of course, Osprey began to heal almost instantly and the damage would be repaired within minutes, "What are you?"
"Like you, I'm something more than human now," Commander Steel answered, "Now let's see how well you hold up under punishment."
Hank Heywood III displayed why he was Wildcat's star pupil and frequent sparring partner. He beat Osprey into submission and then beat him some more. After the Avatar was down, Commander Steel considered Osprey's recuperative powers and then kicked the stuffing out of him. Finally, he latched a pair of tritanium handcuffs onto Osprey. Even Superman had a hard time breaking those.
Judomaster evaded every blow Swan threw. And she placed several strategic shots herself. Only Swan's healing factor kept her from being crippled.
In desperation, Swan unleashed her song. But the All Star deftly avoided the sound wave. And she delivered a sidekick to Swan's jaw even as the song destroyed a half dozen vampires within range.
Swan was totally unnerved and went racing into the vampire throng. Having disappeared, Swan was no longer an imminent threat. But the approaching vampires were. So Judomaster relocated to Commander Steel's side.
"We are far from finished," she told him.
He knew when Sonia Sato's limited English was only that precise she was fully focused on a threat. And the vampires surrounding them definitely looked threatening, "Back to back, like we've practiced."
"Very well," Judomaster smiled at him, "Like we have practiced."
Commander Steel barely registered the fact that her back literally pressed up against his. Nor did he realize the importance of that fact. No one in the JSA All Stars or the JLU before them had ever touched Judomaster even inadvertently. Not until she'd finally allowed him to.
Aztek's experience with Kestrel echoed Commander Steel's with Osprey in many ways. His armor gave him the strength and durability to protect himself while engaging in a devastating offensive. Plus, Aztek derived the abilities to fly and project magical energy bolts from his armor. This allowed Aztek to fight a three dimensional war against a target trapped in a two dimensional paradigm.
So Kestrel was also subdued after a horrific beating. Aztek locked Kestrel's wrists with the tritanium cuffs he carried. And then he noted the encroaching vampires and prepared for another fight.
The Shade encapsulated Lightning in a field of murky darkness. Which was the last thing he should have done. Lightening fired off wave after electrical wave that spread like a storm throughout the Shade's darkness and eventually cascaded out and hit the man himself.
As he passed out, the darkness trapping Lightning began to evaporate. Finding the Shade knocked out and still twitching, she smiled to herself. But that smile quickly faded as she heard and saw salivating vampires surrounding her.
Hawk startled Gentleman Ghost by being able to see him even when he wished to be invisible. But he was still intangible even to Hawk. But Hawk had a sixth sense about knowing when Gentleman Ghost was solidifying and would inflict heavy damage while Gentleman Ghost was tangible and before he could shift states again.
Finally, the Ghost gave up and strode off into the sky. Hawk began to fight the attacking vampires as he desperately made his way towards Dove. There was no way he would allow them to either kill her or impede his progress.
Metamorpho transformed into a cloud of knockout gas and surrounded Ragdoll as he was choking the life out of Arsenal. Ragdoll slowly passed out and Arsenal began gasping for air. In doing so, he sucked in parts of Metamorpho. What Metamorpho detected in Arsenal's bloodstream while he was inside the man discouraged him.
Roy Harper had been a hero once. Now he was decidedly a fallen hero but it also seemed he was a drug addict if the opiates in his system were any indication. With Oliver Queen dead, Metamorpho didn't know who to say anything to. Because the man definitely needed an intervention.
Spotting the vampires on the move towards them from all direction, Metamorpho became a ring of napalm and surround the Injustice Society crook and the mercenary Titan. There'd never be an intervention if Roy didn't survive. And Ragdoll could never be contained by a pair of handcuffs anyway. The contortionist would simply find a way to flex and bend out of them.
Tigress walked towards Icicle, interrupting his killing Gunslinger. She had King Chimera bound and gagged. Icicle was elated to see his wife had already captured an All Star.
"Yo, babe! When did the JSA All Star brats arrive?" he wondered.
She smiled at him and twirled a finger in the air. A cyclone formed around him and began to pick up intensity. Icicle knew he'd been tricked. He tried creating an ice storm but he simply fueled a polar vortex. As King Chimera's bonds vanished and Cyclone stood revealed, she notched up the windstorm until Icicle couldn't get enough air to breathe. Then she released him after he'd passed out.
The pair of All Stars began applying first aid to Gunslinger's wounds from a kit from her vest. King Chimera warned them both, "Hurry, Maxine. The vampires are on the approach and they're excited by the smell of Ms. Trayce's blood."
"Stay close to me," Cyclone recreated a tornado all around them as they stood in the eye. Vampires were sucked in and helplessly flailed about.
"Neat trick," Gunslinger retrieved her revolver from the ground.
"It gets better," Cyclone grinned and the trio lifted off the ground.
"Nooo!" Dove screamed as she flew towards Tigress. But Sportsmaster's and the original Tigress' daughter slit Sword-in-Waiting's throat and he was dead before Dove could reach him.
"Aw, did-ums I upset you?" Tigress mocked Dove with baby talk as she brandished Amethyst's now bloody sword.
"You haven't even begun to see me upset yet," Dove offered fair warning.
Tigress tipped the sword at Dove, "I'm guessing you have no defense against this beauty."
"You'd be surprised," Dove replied.
Tigress wore a hungry smile as she came at Dove. She used classical fencing techniques before broadening her attacks to kendo stylings. Dove simply did a one handed cartwheel to gain some distance and perspective.
"Not bad, you're still alive after all that," Tigress acknowledged, "But can you do more than simply dodge and weave?"
Dove leapt over Tigress' head. As her feet solidly touched down behind Tigress, Dove threw an elbow into the back of her head. Tigress stumbled forward.
As she stumbled, Tigress threw a wild backhanded stroke at Dove. But Dove suddenly appeared in front of Tigress and took hold of her tunic and used her own momentum to throw Tigress down. Tigress tucked and rolled while cradling the crystalline sword.
Tigress rose with sword poised to strike, "Nice. You're nimble, I'll give you that. Fast too. And as you demonstrated earlier, you can fly too."
"I won't need to," Dove promised.
"Then get it on!" Tigress was excited now.
Dove came at Tigress snapping off punches and kicks, always with the intent to draw Amethyst's sword into the fray. Tigress dully noticed the blade began to faintly glow. But she ignored that fact as she slide tackled Dove and got atop of her and pressed the sword's blade to Dove's throat.
"Say bye, bye birdie," Tigress taunted.
"Okay," Dove said with equanimity.
As Tigress went to cut Dove's throat, energy spilled out of the sword and flowed through Tigress. She slumped off of Dove and lay paralyzed as Dove rose and picked up the sword. Tigress' eyes were filled with frustration rather than fear.
"H…h…how?" Tigress managed to ask.
"This sword is the personal weapon of a Lord of Order. I'm an Avatar of Order. Now how do you suppose it would react to trying to kill me?" Dove posed her own query.
Dove applied a simple nerve pinch and Tigress passed out. Spotting Hawk's approach and the vampires closing ranks around her, Dove hefted Amethyst's sword, "It seems I need to borrow you for a bit."
The sword seemed to agree with her so Dove flew into action.
Vibe watched as Cinder blazed away at Shadow Thief. The battle seemed futile but Cisco Ramone could perceive connections that others couldn't. Shadow Thief was tied to interdimensional power and was shifting and phasing in and out of this reality. She spotted him first.
"Who are you?" she wanted to know.
"I'm your worst nightmare," Vibe told her. Vibe aimed a hand at her and the air rippled as his vibration powers severed the dimensional ties created by Shadow Thief's suit. And she became tangible.
"She's all yours," Vibe bowed towards Cinder.
Cinder unleashed her powers and this time the plasma and flames didn't simply pass through Shadow Thief. But the shadow skin she wore still protected her. So Cinder contented herself with consuming all the oxygen around Shadow Thief and waiting for her to pass out. Which she did shortly thereafter.
"Thank you, whoever you are," Cinder grudgingly offered.
"We're not done with each other yet," Vibe warned her,.
"Why?" Cinder snapped, assuming he had the worst of intentions.
"Because of them?" Vibe swept his arms around at the surrounding vampires.
"Oh. Right," Cinder incinerated half of them with a plasma wave.
"Cool. But watch this," Vibe took aim at the other half. Seeing that the vampires were tied to an Interdimensional life force, he simply cut it off and they all crumbled to dust.
"How?" she was baffled.
Vibe explained and then added, "That's sorta my thing."
Cinder reverted to being human and he saw she was completely naked. Cinder threw her arms around Vibe's neck and hungrily kissed him. Then she reverted to her plasma state.
"And this is mine," she said with a very shy and cautious smile.
"Well, seeing as how your bad guy is down and we can kick serious vampire ass, how would you like to win a war with me?" Vibe inquired.
"Names first," Cinder insisted.
"I'm Vibe," he shared.
"Cinder," she revealed, "And I think I'd like that."
"Then what are we waiting for?" he asked with a carefree grin.
So they went hunting vampires rather than vampires hunting them.
The Wisdom of Solomon told Captain Marvel fighting Solomon Grundy was a mistake, "Grundy, stop!"
To his surprise, Grundy did exactly that, "What?"
"Why are we even fighting?" Captain Marvel asked.
"Captain Marvelous hit Grundy. Grundy hit back," he explained.
And Captain Marvel realized the pointless fight was his fault, "Okay, let's call a truce."
"Okay," Grundy dully agreed, "What's a truce?"
"Not punching each other," Captain Marvel broke it down as simply as he could.
"Okay," Grundy seemed to like that idea, "Where Mary Marvelous?"
"I don't know," Captain Marvel realized with jolt fop panic, "Want to help me look for her?"
"Grundy help," the immense zombie agreed.
"I think you should stay on foot," captain Marvel suggested.
"Good. Flying make Grundy sick," he groaned.
Faust completed the ritual. And it had been every bit as savage and brutal as expected. Drakul hung with organs ripped out and limbs and heart torn from his body. Blood soaked Faust and Mary both.
"Oh look, the peasants come to oppose their goddess," Mary sneered as Pandora and Enchantress reached them, at long last, "You haven't even faced my elite yet."
As Mary's Royal Guard attacked Pandora, Faust opened with the first salvo at Enchantress, "Haven't learned you can't defeat me, witch?"
But Enchantress met his conjuring with equal and greater force. Faust was amazed because he hadn't realized Enchantress had been holding back on their previous encounter. Enchantress had access to incalculable amounts of magic but she became drunk on the power and when she was intoxicated, she became evil.
Pandora fought two dozen armed vampires simultaneously. Only her ability to heal almost instantly and inability to die, kept her in the fight. And suddenly a one-eyed girl with a two toned skull cap and flowing white hair landed next to Pandora while brandishing two swords.
As Ravager began beheading vampires, she chided Pandora, "No need to thank me."
"You are every much like your father," Pandora acknowledged her.
"I'm not sure that's a compliment," Ravager retorted, "But I'm here for the fight and not you anyway."
"Like your father indeed," Pandora whispered to herself.
Amon descended, bringing the Shining Knight with him while the Thunderbolt carried Jakeem Thunder. Jakeem looked around in disgust as the entire vampire army shifted its focus on them, "Say you, Thunderbolt. Kick some vampire ass."
"You betcha!" the Thunderbolt enthused.
Amon called his patron god's own name and summoned mystical lightning from Shazam to hurl at the vampire forces. The Shining Knight was the closest to Mary Seward, so he lifted his sword against the Queen of Blood. And for the first time in months, Mary looked worried.
Soul Thief was defeated and still barely alive. Zatanna's heated and impassioned pleas swayed Jennifer and Amethyst into sparing him. But Amethyst transported him with her to Gemworld where he would be held in the deepest dungeon. Zee and Jennifer began to pursue the vampires converging on Mary's position.
And Stargirl had mustered all of her inner strength by that time and began using the Cosmic Rod to radiate sunlight over and through Faust's darkness. As the light began to filter down, the vampires lost their supernatural gifts and became nearly mortal again. And the tide of battle severely turned against them.
At Biarkeresztes, Black Alice snapped out of her catatonia, "We need to join the others and get into the fight!"
"They said to wait," Detective Chimp argued.
"You're going to bloody well side with those nags when we can finally do something?" Goldilocks protested.
"Okay, I think I can work this thing," Detective Chimp held up Amethyst's gem. Goldilocks scooped up a wooden stake.
"Just in case," she shrugged as Misfit smirked at her.
"Hold on," Detective Chimp advised.
And suddenly they were at Targu Mures right in the midst of the battle surround Mary Seward. Misfit immediately threw in with the Enchantress against Faust. Black Alice knew Faust would resist her but she started to drain his power in order to weaken him against Enchantress and Misfit.
Goldilocks jumped behind Mary and wrapped her up in her hair. Then Goldilocks staked Mary through the heart. Because of the ritual, Mary was now the sire of every vampire present, including her own sire, Andrew Bennett. As she crumbled to dust, so did every vampire on the field.
Only the maimed Drakul remained and he only lived long enough to curse Mary's name.
Jay Young started as he awakened. Vac Shade returned to Earth Prime, having successfully reunited Mindwarp with his soul. Both were exhausted.
Outside of Swamp Thing's enclosure, Easy Company noticed the development as they stood watch. Ice Cream Soldier called out, "They're all back, Rock."
"Then I guess it's time we moved on," Sgt. Rock opined. And the soldiers of Easy Company, the crew of the Haunted Tank, and the Unknown Soldier all faded back into history.
Swamp Thing reassured Jay and Shade, "Rest easy and allow the power of the Parliament of Trees to renew your strength."
The Justice League Dark took custody of the Wizard, Faust, Condor, Osprey, and Kestrel. The House of Secrets appeared on the battle site and the prisoners were incarcerated within. Afterwards, the house vanished to wherever it chose to go next.
Then the House of Mystery appeared to gather the JLD. Junior happily left and Jason Blood and Deadman greeted the JLers as they entered. Inside, Shade and Mindwarp awoke finding themselves refreshed beyond measure and wondering where Swamp Thing had disappeared to.
Sir Justin was unimaginably stunned that it was Goldilocks that had ended the war. She offered him a shy smile in return, "Well, I've joined the Justice League Dark. This is what we do."
"But why join?" Sir Justin wanted to know.
"At first my plan was to impress you and win your heart," Goldilocks readily confessed, "But then it came to mean more to me. And that's why I stayed and fought today."
"And may I ask why dids't thou join?" Sir Justin inquired.
"I did it to find out what's left of my own heart," Goldilocks confessed, "I wanted to know if I could be the good person I was as a child before everything went wrong."
"And that is the only virtuous answer I would accept," Sir Justin admitted, "I cannot express my surprise at seeing you here with such boon companions. But there is also a sense of delight as well."
Goldilocks' heart threatened to soar but she made certain to hide that fact, "You, and others, have shown me a better way, Sir Justin. A way filled with chivalry and nobility. I'll never measure up to your own standard, or that of my sister, but I'm striving to set a standard of my own."
"As it truly should be," he was elated that his most vexing foe was now seeing the light, "Thou cans't aspire to knighthood but in this modern era thou can aspire for ever so much more. Thou cans't be more than just a lady. Thou cans't be a true hero."
"I'm not sure I can dream that large yet," Goldilocks stated, "But if I can make my sister, and you, proud then my dream will have come true."
"Nobly said," Sir Justin approved.
Misfit had been sent to retrieve Goldilocks, "The house is moving soon and Madame Xanadu and the big wigs want to talk to you."
"Fret away, Charli. We'll soon miss our ride and have to fend for ourselves in darkest Romania," Goldilocks teased her.
"You really want me to worry?" Misfit asked.
"Of course not, I was just trying to spark your rebellious spirit," Goldilocks shared.
"You're the strangest…and coolest adult I've ever met," Misfit admitted, "So hurry up so you don't get left behind."
"Out of the mouths of babes and all that. And she's only three years younger than me," Goldilocks grinned at the Shining Knight.
"Fare thee well, milady," Sir Justin bade her farewell, "Until we meet again on the morrow."
"Just a word?" Goldilocks requested, "Two men are going to attempt to visit Tessa. One will have silver hair and the other dark hair. They'll seem out of place because they are. Under no circumstances can Tessa be alone with these two men. If they manage that, they'll change history."
Sir Justine wanted to doubt her but she'd never seemed saner, "I…shall endeavor to do so."
"You'll have to do better than that," Goldilocks warned, "The fate of this world and its future depend upon it."
"How coulds't thou possibly know that?" the Shining Knight inquired.
"Because I've already lived it," Goldilocks confessed. She could see Sir Justin doubting her sanity again, "I know it sounds crazy now but it won't soon and very soon. Far too soon, actually. You cannot let Mekt Ranzz or Laevar Bolto anywhere near Tessa."
"And why is this?" Sir Justin asked.
"Because Tessa will forget who she's become and remember who she's always been," Goldilocks said cryptically. She saw his doubts fleshed out, "Look, you of all people should know time paradoxes mess with the head."
"I think we can agree on the insanity of these pleas," Sir Justin said stonily.
Goldilocks was disheartened, "Goodbye Justin. We're fated to meet again. Hopefully under better circumstances next time around."
She trudged off to the House of Mystery and it vanished as soon as she closed the front door behind her. Sir Justin impassively dismissed her claims.
Inside the House of Mystery, Madame Xanadu brought Goldilocks into her parlor. The Phantom Stranger and Pandora were already present. Madame Xanadu sat down and shuffled her cards.
"I've seen your fear become reality as they did for you before," she told Goldilocks, "You are correct in focusing on the Shining Knight. He alone has the ability to avert disaster but he can only do so with your aid. But if history is averted then you will have sacrificed your ambition to claim Sir Justin for your own. Can you do that? Can you sacrifice your personal desires to avert a thousand years of tyranny? Can you prevent Earth Prime from surrendering to Darkseid without a struggle and taking the multiverse with it?"
"I…can. It's why Dr. Fate sent me back here. Because my present self is sitting out these events," Goldilocks revealed.
"The beginning appears to be immutable but the end…the end isn't fixed quite yet," Madame Xanadu counseled her.
"I see," and Goldilocks hated the fact that she did, "Then I guess I'd best start packing and making travel arrangements. Where have we gone to?"
"Brooklyn," Madame Xanadu smiled, "Just where we need to be. As always."
As Goldilocks departed, Pandora asked another burning question, "What about the First Lantern crisis?"
"The LSV will strike because it's a historical fact that the Lanterns Corps are all preoccupied with Volthoom. And the sooner they ally with the Legion of Doom then the sooner the two Legions can reach an accord with the Power Ring Corps Volthoom is creating," the Phantom Stranger remarked.
"But the future isn't fixed yet," Madam Xanadu reminded them, "We have altered outcomes in the past, creating a different interpretation of predicted results. We can do it again but it will require all three of us working in tandem to guide those forces needed to push the future into a more desirable state."
"Then we are also agreed that we need to bring in Shazam, Dr. Mist, Nabu, and Amethyst?" Pandora asked.
"Amethyst can serve as our liaison with the Lords of Order…and even Kismet herself if need be," the Phantom Stranger decided.
"Agreed," Madame Xanadu declared.
"I agree," Pandora decided.
"Then let us begin," the Phantom Stranger proclaimed.
The JSA All Stars were mostly wary of the Titans. Vibe being a notable exception. As Anna teleported the Titans back to where they could fly their chartered jet back to their base of operations, Vibe looked wistful as they vanished.
"What are you dreaming about, Cisco?" Commander Steel asked him
"Nothing much," Vibe shrugged and joined in on the hike to reach the Star Spangled Racer.
But Vibe wasn't fooling Commander Steel. He and Judomaster had seen the looks exchanged between Vibe and the fiery Cinder. She seemed Vibe's type. All damaged and full of anger. Just the sort he'd try and save from herself. He wondered if Vibe realized missionary dating rarely worked.
Captain Marvel and Junior had been unable to find Mary. Anna had shifted Grundy off somewhere private. Captain Marvel finally turned to her as a last resort.
"Actually, things are a muddle here," Anna hated to admit, "We need Vibe."
Junior was a blur as he vanished and reappeared with a shaken Vibe. Vibe steadied himself, "Whoa! I think I lost a filling."
Anna described the situation to him and he began probing around, "Two portals were opened nearby. They went to the same place at different times. Mary's ties to Shazam lead to the oldest portal."
"So where do the portals go to?" Captain Marvel dreaded the answer.
"The Subtle Realms," Vibe hated to answer.