Disclaimer: I do not have the ownership rights to the DC animated universe nor to Danny Phantom. Please support the official releases.

A/N: Thank you to Jaguarspot for looking over this chapter, it was awesome to know that this was one of your favorite episodes. Also thank you to Phantom-Thunder for the useful ideas. Last but not least, Thank you to all of you reader for support this story!

Beacon of Justice

Chapter 16

The Watchtower

The door leading to the cafeteria opened with a loud hiss and Wonder Woman causally stepped inside. She stopped in her tracks and her eyes conducted a brief scan of the entire room. Alas, curiosity struck her when she was not able to find the Flash anywhere in the crowd. With one glance at the clock mounted on the wall, she realized she had in fact, arrived exactly at the time agreed upon by herself and the Scarlet Speedster. Perhaps it was necessary for Wonder Woman to remind the Flash – again– that being the 'Fastest Man Alive' does not translate to having good time management skills.

A whooshing sound rushed in from behind the Amazon, interrupting her train of thought. Without hesitation, she turned around, and saw Flash standing behind her, with his trademark toothy grin.

"Almost thought you weren't going to show," she began, grinning herself.

"Y-yeah, sorry about that," said the Flash, rubbing the back of his head. "I kinda got side-tracked."

"Is that so?" asked Wonder Woman, glancing back at the clock. "Well, realistically, you were only late by about twenty seconds."

"Oh, come now, Diana; you and I both know that's like a lifetime for me."

"True," Wonder Woman chuckled, and then turned to walk towards the serving area.

Together, the two founding Leaguers acquired their trays and began filling them. Wonder Woman managed to get everything she needed in one station. Flash, on the other hand, was moving in a blur to nearly every station in the cafeteria, quite literally piling everything available onto his tray.

Honestly, Wonder Woman did not blame the Flash for his grotesque eating habits. She knew, as well as understood, that his amazing ability for speed was also the very thing that burned through his body's energies in an alarmingly short time. Ultimately, she was just glad that the League was able to keep Flash satisfied.

"This was a great idea, Wally," she said as she placed her tray down on a table before taking a seat herself. "I can't remember the last time we've had a chance to catch up."

Flash nodded, and took a seat next to the Amazon. "Mostly my fault," he replied apologetically. "I've been pretty busy in Central City."

"I wanna hear all about it," encouraged Wonder Woman, "I saw some of it on the news, but it's not the same as-"

A presence in her peripheral vison made her words drift into nonexistence. As she tilted her head, she found her face falling into a deep frown at the sight of Shayera Hol.

Coincidentally, the Thanagarian seemed to be as displeased to see the Amazon as she had been with her. With firmly furrowed eyebrows, Shayera rounded on Flash. "Oh, I'm sorry." She began with a hint of sarcasm. "I thought we were having dinner tonight."

Flash blinked before responding. "Is it Tuesday? Silly me!" He paused to tap himself on the forehead. "Making dinner plans with two beautiful women on the same night."

Wonder Woman looked unconvinced. "…Uh huh."

Shayera looked from Flash to Wonder Woman for a moment, and then she turned on her heels. "We can do this another time." She declared. Before she was able to step off however, Flash suddenly got up and blocked her path.

"Don't be ridiculous, we can all have a meal together," advised the speedster as he placed a hand on Shayera's shoulder. As gently as he was willing, he guided Shayera back to the table, and sat her down directly opposite Wonder Woman. "It's a chance for us to get reacquainted; patch things up."

"Assuming we want to." Wonder Woman hissed under her breath.

Shayera heard her and narrowed her eyes dangerously.

"Now there's an example of exactly the kind of thing that we're not gonna do anymore, right?" Flash inquired, gripping both women's shoulders. "I'm telling ya, once we clear the air; everybody's gonna be pals again." He shrugged as another thought came to him. "I always thought the reason you two don't get along was that you're so much alike."

"LIKE HER?" Both Wonder Woman and Shayera demanded at the same time.

Silence loomed over the three of them as the Flash looked between both women with a slightly flustered smile. Wonder Woman and Shayera gave each other one last glare, and then began digging into their meals. As they ate, both women were doing their best to ignore the other.

"You guys aren't even trying," Flash accused. "You can at least talk to each other."

Shayera jerked her eyes at the speedster, and then at the Amazon. "…The pasta's good." She remarked before taking another bite.

Wonder Woman did not repay the eye contact. "It's the sauce." She muttered.

Shayera went to take another bite, but then she breathed a sigh and put her fork down. "This isn't gonna work, is it?" she questioned.

"Not a chance." Wonder Woman answered immediately. With considerable speed, both women got up off their seats, and walked out of the cafeteria in opposite directions.

"Hey, where are you going? Come on." Flash demanded, getting off his seat as well. Unfortunately, neither Wonder Woman nor Shayera paid him any attention as they both exited the room in different directions. Flash hung his head and sighed. Then he was suddenly aware that the room had gotten too quiee. He whipped quickly and realized that every Leaguer in the room had given him their undivided attention.

At that moment, a part of him wanted to give into the embarrassment and run away, but another part of him thought of a better idea. Putting on his most convincing smile, he said. "He had dinner with two women at the same time." He paused to casually lean on the table. "'Cause I'm a stud."

A squishy sensation made him frown. When he set his gaze downward, he realized his entire hand was covered in whipped cream and frosting. He sighed once again and sunk back on his chair. Then, as he began to lick the toppings off his fingers, he thought about his failed plan.

It wasn't supposed to go down like that. Flash thought. I just want everyone to get along. Was that too much to ask for?

As he played the failure repeatedly in his head, he did notice one thing; at least they had both agreed that the dinner was a bad idea.

Beacon found herself caught in an internal debate as she wandered through the hall. On one side, she wanted to know if there were any missions available. While on the other, she wanted to take a seat somewhere and come up with a plan for her and Kara's inevitable second date.

To give Kara credit, she had not been nagging about the date, as Beacon feared she might. While the Halfa truly appreciated that, she knew that was not an excuse to slack on her promise.

With a spring in her step, Beacon rounded a corner, and found herself walking down another stretch of hallway. However, this time she realized she was not alone.

Walking a few paces in front of the Halfa was the ever-so-elegant Wonder Woman. "Diana… Diana! Wait up!" Beacon called out. The Amazon turned around curiously before greeting her with a smile.

"Hello, Rachel," she said warmly, "how are you?"

"I'm doing okay," Beacon replied, "but I have to admit I'm a bit surprised to see you. Weren't you having dinner with Flash?"

Wonder Woman's smile fell slightly. "Oh, well yes, I um... I lost my appetite."

Beacon raised a curious brow, and then wondered what could have possibly caused the Amazon to call off the dinner with the speedster. However, when she noticed Wonder Woman looking somewhat embarrassed, the Halfa decided not to push the subject further.

"Alright, so what are you up to now?" asked the Halfa.

Wonder Woman looked away for a second, her face deep in thought. "I'm… I'm thinking of just heading back to my room. Relax while I can, you know?"

Beacon nodded, she could relate completely. In the League's line of work, there could be periods where missions would literally come one right after the other. Therefore, in Beacon's humble opinion, one should take advantage of any available down time.

"What about you?" asked Wonder Woman, jarring Beacon out of her thoughts. "What are yougoing to do?"

"Oh, I was just on my way to the lounge." Beacon answered. "I gotta start planning for my next date with Kara."

"Speaking of which, where isKara?"

"She's in the Fortress with Superman." Beacon revealed. Then, she shrugged. "He thought it would be quality family-time."

Starting from last week, Kara had been accompanying the Man of Steel on more and more missions. When asked what had caused him to make such an arrangement, Superman told both his cousin and Beacon that he wanted to help the former further develop her Kryptonian powers. However, Beacon suspected him of a different motive. She suspected that the Man of Steel was making every effort he could to make up for the distance he put between himself and Kara.

Beacon strongly appreciated and respected Superman's efforts, but she was admittedly a little jealous. For the majority of the past few days, Superman got to spend more time with Kara than she did.

Thankfully, both Kara and herself had their date to look forward to.

"AHH!"

The scream came from Beacon and Wonder Woman's left. Turning their heads in perfect unison, they realized that they were looking into the infirmary, where the Martian Manhunter was trying his best to steady a writhing man. The Halfa and the Amazon exchanged looks. Then together, they leapt over the railing, and quickly made their way closer to the scene.

Almost immediately, Beacon could tell something was terribly wrong. The Manhunter was still trying his best to steady the man, whom the Halfa recognized as being Jason Blood. Unfortunately, no matter how hard J'onn tried, he could not stop Jason from squirming in complete agony.

"Etrigan, calm yourself!" J'onn insisted firmly. "Let me help you."

Jason did not respond to J'onn's words. Instead, he continued to writhe in agony as his entire body transformed into his demon self. "The gates of Tartarus swing both ways!" he announced. Beacon blinked at that statement. It was clear to her that Etrigan was trying to convey a message. Only, she had no idea what it meant. Before she could think any further, she noticed Etrigan turn back into Jason, and he spoke again. "The balance tips towards chaos." Jason let out a long, drawn-out grunt, and then he began to transform again. Only this time, he seemed to be caught halfway between his human self and his demon self.

Beacon continued to stare at Etrigan as J'onn carried him to a stretcher, and then restrained his wrists with the built-in shackles. However, the human-demon continued to writhe against the invisible torture.

Without another glance at Etrigan, J'onn exited the infirmary by phasing through the glass. Once he was through to the other side, Wonder Woman instantly began asking questions. "What's happening here?"

"I don't know," J'onn responded. "Suddenly all of our members with magical powers…" He paused to gesture to the other patients in the infirmary. "… well, you can see."

Beacon and Wonder Woman followed J'onn's indication. Lying directly next to Etirgan were Doctor Fate, and Zatanna. Both of them seemed to be suffering from the same torture.

"Z…" Beacon muttered under her breath.

As the magician continued to squirm, strange words began to flow out of her mouth. "Lla si tosl! …Tusaf tis no eht enort fo lleh!"

Again, Beacon realized she was telling her something, but what did they all mean? What was happening to cause these people so much pain?

As if mirroring her thoughts, Wonder Woman turned back to J'onn. "They're in agony! What can we do?"

The Martian turned and gave both women a firm look. "Echo and I are researching. As soon as we learn something I'll let you know." With that, J'onn turned and quickly stalked away.

Beacon turned back to look at Zatanna, and pressed her palms against the glass. "Hang in there, you guys." She whispered. She then turned to look at Wonder Woman, who had the same look of sadness and anxiety in her eyes. Beacon knew they both shared a special fondness for the magician. After all, she had a firm hand in the fight against Circe when she turned the Amazon into a pig.

"…Come on," Wonder Woman insisted before walking away as well.

Beacon nodded, and followed, but not before taking a last look at Zatanna.

"There has to be something we can do!" Beacon exclaimed.

Wonder Woman tilted her head down to meet her gaze. "I want to help them just as much as you, but perhaps the best thing to do right now is just be patient."

Beacon grimaced, and crossed her arms over her chest. "…Okay," she agreed reluctantly.

The Amazon wrapped her arm around Beacon and gave her a gentle squeeze. "Don't look so worried." She asserted. The Halfa tipped her head up and saw a smile on her lips. "They're all gonna be okay. We'll make sure of it." As though feeding off Wonder Woman's positivity, Beacon found herself smiling as well.

After another minute or so, they finally made their way to Wonder Woman's quarters. The Amazon placed her hand on the scanner, and the door opened with a hiss. The room was almost covered in complete darkness, save for the light coming through the large window that had a plain view of the Earth.

Both women stood rooted to the spot when they saw something move in the shadows. Beacon narrowed her eyes in an attempt to focus through the darkness, and she did manage to find some success. She was able to make out a silhouette of a human body lying on what she guessed was Wonder Woman's bed. By the look of the large chest and squared jaw, the Halfa guessed the body belonged to a man. Her eyes traveled up the man's jaw and stopped at the top of his head, where she noticed the outline of some sort hat with tips on the sides.

"FLASH?" Wonder Woman demanded. Beacon raised a curious brow upon hearing that name. She wondered why the speedster would randomly break into his teammate's room. Then again, he did seem the type to pull that sort of shenanigans.

"… No, no, it's the original speedster." The voice came from the man, and it did not belong to the Flash.

"Huh?" Beacon blurted out before she could suppress it. Beside her, Wonder Woman was just as confused. With a quick glance to the side, she located the light switch and flipped it. As a soft, white glow lit up the room; both Beacon and Wonder Woman finally saw who the mysterious man was. He was wearing a simple white tunic that was slung over just one shoulder, leaving half of his bare chest exposed. On his feet was a pair of leather sandals with feather-like wings attached at the heels. Lastly, the hat Beacon saw earlier turned out to be a golden helmet with a pair of wings.

The man locked eyes with Wonder Woman before taking a bite out of a half-eaten banana. "Hey, Diana," he addressed before glancing over at Beacon, "and Miss Robertson," he turned back to the Amazon, "I let myself in."

"Hermes!" Wonder Woman said quickly. She straightened her posture and gave the man a courteous bow. "How may I serve the Messenger of the Gods?" Beacon glanced from Wonder Woman to Hermes, not knowing if she should follow her example or simply remain still. In the end, she went with the latter.

Hermes' chuckle was barely audible as he got off Wonder Woman's bed and began making his way towards them. However, Beacon realized he had left his half-eaten banana behind. Okay, apparently working for the Gods meant it's okay to litter. She thought dryly.

"Don't be so formal, Diana." The sound of Hermes speaking again broke Beacon's train of thought. The Halfa glanced up to see him perk up Wonder Woman's chin. "You're practically a member of the family. Not that this is a social visit." He paused to look down and began to rummage through a large satchel filled with paper scrolls.

"I've got something for you," Hermes continued. "It's pretty important; Zeus paid for overnight service… Here it is." He picked one scroll out, and handed it to Wonder Woman, who immediately opened and read it.

"For a good time, call Podenemus…"

Hermes instantly let out a series of incoherent sounds, and then snatched the scroll from the Amazon's hands. "Wrong scroll!" He announced, stuffing it back into his satchel. "I think I got a shot; it's her cell number."

"Um, I hope everything works out for you?" Beacon asked hesitantly.

Hermes shifted his gaze to her, and gave her a warm smile. "Thanks. I just hope the Fates are looking out for me, y'know what I mean?"

"Uh… Sure," Beacon shrugged.

With that brief exchange, Hermes rummaged through his satchel one more time and pulled out another scroll. "Here we go," the Messenger remarked. He then opened it and began to read. "'By decree of Zeus, Father of Olympus, it is so ordered: Diana of Themyscira will travel to Tartarus, and set right that which has been disturbed.'" Hermes closed the scroll and returned it to his satchel.

There was a moment of silence as both Beacon and Wonder Woman thought about the message. Before the former could piece anything together, Wonder Woman spoke up. "He's telling me to go to-"

"Basically," Hermes interjected. "Felix Faust is on the loose again."

Wonder Woman frowned at the mention of the name. "Felix Faust is dead."

"Wait, remind me please, who's Felix Faust?" asked Beacon. The name sounded familiar, but the Halfa could not form a solid memory around it.

"Faust was a man that nearly released all the evil in Tartarus," informed Wonder Woman, "He turned my mother and sisters into statues." Beacon widened her eyes. This Faust person must have been very dangerous if he was able to defeat the Amazons.

"But fortunately, you and your friends were able to put an end to his scheme," praised Hermes, prompting both women to turn back to him. Then, he frowned and pulled out a third scroll. "But he's prettyupset about it." He opened the scroll, and began reading again. "His spirit possessed the weapon known as the Annihilator."

"The Annihilator?" echoed Beacon. "So that's what happened to it!"

"Yes," Hermes confirmed before continuing to read. "Once he had control of the weapon, he headed straight for the gates of Tartarus… I mean, straight for it… The Amazons did their best to stop him. They were good, but they were out of their weight class. Once inside, he went looking for Hades and took him off his throne." Beacon felt her heart sink. If everything she heard about the Annihilator was true, the Amazons never stood a chance, and apparently, neither did the God of the Underworld.

Just as she finished her thoughts, she heard a rustle of paper, and realized Hermes was putting the scroll back in his satchel. "Guess Faust's still torqued." He said. "Hades messed him over pretty good a few years back."

Wonder Woman narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "I was there."

Hermes nodded before turning and taking several steps away. "And you'll be there this time. You must defeat Faust and restore Hades to the throne of Tartarus."

The Amazon fought the urge to scoff. "So far as I'm concerned: they deserve each other." She jabbed. "Why should I care about this?"

"You mean, other than the direct-order-from-the-gods thing?" Hermes asked, turning back around. "Because there must always be balance between chaos and order, when there isn't…"

At that notion, Beacon gasped. "The magic-users!" Hermes flexed his index finger at her, as if to say, "bingo".

Wonder Woman's face fell as she too realized the severity of the situation, but once again, Hermes was there to tilt her chin up. "Need you to do the right thing," he stated with a smile, "and your friends are in good hands; yours." He beamed at both Beacon and Wonder Woman. Then, with a gust of wind, Hermes vanished.

"So," Beacon turned to Wonder Woman after a moment. "How should we go about doing this?"

Wonder Woman looked at her firmly, and then turned to approach the wall, where her sword and shield hung waiting. "Simple," she answered as she took the shield. "We go to Tartarus and deal with Faust."

"Um, not to burst your bubble, Diana," Beacon remarked, "but Faust is gonna be packing some serious heat! I think we might need more than swords, shields, and fisticuffs.

Beacon realized her words must have gotten through to Wonder Woman, because she paused right as she reached for her sword. After a moment of silence, the Amazon turned back to meet the Halfa's gaze.

"You have a point." She agreed, putting her shield back on the wall. Immediately following, she turned on her heels and quickly strolled out of her room. "Come on."

"So, where are we going?" asked the Halfa. "What do we need?"

"The Annihilator runs off of mystical energy." Wonder Woman told her while keeping her eyes up front. "We're going to need disrupt it if we want to defeat Faust."

Beacon blinked and nearly keeled over at the revelation. It all made sense, the perfect thing to use against the Annihilator was Shayera's Nth metal mace. "If that's the case," began Beacon, "Are we going to bring Shayera along?" A twinge of excitement began coursing through the Halfa; she had been itching to go on a mission with the Thanagarian ever since she came back to the League.

"No."

Wonder Woman's response caught Beacon completely off-guard.

Beacon stared at the Amazon with wide-open eyes. "What? Why not?" She exclaimed, admittedly a little louder that she'd liked.

"Because, we don't need her," Wonder Woman hissed. "We just need the mace."

"But, Diana," Beacon argued. "Wouldn't it just be easier to bring her along?" The Amazon's reluctance was starting to worry her. While she knew that Wonder Woman was not in good terms with Shayera, Beacon thought she would at least be willing to put that aside for the sake of the mission.

Alas, Wonder Woman never gave her an answer and they arrived at Shayera's door in silence. Beacon waited patiently while the Amazon slowly raised her fist, and gently tapped on the door once.

"Shayera?" she whispered. Several seconds passed, but the door did not open nor did any response come from the inside. Beacon saw that Wonder Woman was beginning to make a second attempt, but then, she dropped her hand completely and turned to her. "Can you get inside and open the door?" she asked in the same hushed tone.

The Halfa stared up at the Amazon in disbelief. This situation had just escalated into ridiculousness. At the very least, she could tolerate not bringing Shayera along, but invading a teammate's privacy was just taking it too far.

"Seriously, Diana?" Beacon replied, also keeping her voice down. "Why don't we just ask the Monitor platform where she is? I mean, Echo could find her in, like, two seconds."

"That'd take too long," retorted Wonder Woman. "We'll be in and out before anyone knows it."

Beacon pressed her lips firmly together. "This is messed up." She remarked. "Breaking in and stealing-"

"We're not stealing." Wonder Woman interrupted. "We're just… borrowing."

"Borrowing without permission?" snapped the Halfa. "That's the same thing!" She knew that they were caught in a stalemate, with neither side getting any advantage over the other. Even worse, every second they delayed only prolonged Zatanna, Doctor Fate, and Etrigan's suffering.

Wonder Woman breathed a long sigh, and then reached for her earpiece. For a moment, Beacon felt a smile form on her lips. It appeared that the Amazon had finally seen some sense.

Then, one sentence made Beacon's smile fall like a ton of bricks.

"Echo? Security override. User code: 0-0-3." Wonder Woman kept her eyes away from Beacon as she waited for the miniature robot to accept her request. When her override was granted, she turned her attention to Shayera's door. "Unlock this door."

Beacon watched the red light on the panel next to the door turn green. Then, the door itself spilt open and Wonder Woman walked inside. With a soft sigh, Beacon followed the Amazon. With one glance, she noticed that Shayera's room was not as personalized as Wonder Woman's, but perhaps the Thanagarian just preferred to keep it that way. She turned her head and found Wonder Woman sneaking around at the other end of the room, and then peeking her head into Shayera's closet.

"We should hurry up," She whispered quickly. Wonder Woman did not answer as she pulled out of the closet and turned around to look at another wall. Beacon followed her gaze as well and, to her slight relief, saw the Nth metal mace hanging there. Wonder Woman seemed to share her relief, because she smiled and walked over to the mace at a faster pace.

"Okay, we got it," Beacon observed as Wonder Woman took the mace from the wall. "Now let's get out of here before we get-" The sudden feeling of a presence to her left made her gasp and tense up. She deeply did not want to turn that way to see whom she had sensed, but at the same time, she knew exactly who was standing there. Slowly, Beacon turned her head, and gazed directly into the green eyes of Shayera Hol. "-busted." She finished in a defeated tone.

Shayera was currently leaning against the door with her arms crossed, and looking completely unamused. "Something I can help you with?"

Beacon turned to exchange looks with Wonder Woman, but the latter only had eyes for Shayera. "Look, I need it," said the Amazon, holding the mace up higher. "I'll bring it back."

Shayera's expression did not change as she gave her reply. "We become pals when I wasn't looking?"

Wonder Woman sighed. "There's trouble on Themyscira, mystical trouble."

"Yeah," Beacon chimed in. "That Felix Faust guy is controlling the Annihilator and threw magic off balance. Now Z, Fate, and Etrigan are getting the worse of it! We…We were hoping to use your mace to put an end to it."

Shayera stared at her for a moment before looking back at Wonder Woman. "Whatever's happening on that island of yours must be pretty badfor you to resort to this," she proclaimed. Then with a glance at Beacon, she added. "You even convinced our innocent friend here to be your accomplice."

Beacon's eyes fell as her cheeks suddenly became hot.

Wonder Woman did not seem as bothered by that last statement. "It's life and death," she said gloomily before raising the mace once more. "Can I have it?"

Shayera gave her a hard look before she said. "Uh-uh." Wonder Woman frowned as her arms fell. While she was wallowing in Shayera's denial however, the Amazon failed to see the Thanagarian walk up to her until they were practically nose-to-nose.

"It's a package deal." Shayera continued as she gently took her mace back. "You want the mace? You get me too."

Beacon could not escape the feeling of irony as she stared at both founding Leaguers. In the beginning, Wonder Woman was completely against bringing Shayera along, but now it looked as though she had little to no choice on the matter.

True to Beacon's prediction, Wonder Woman nodded.

"Alright then, let's get started." Shayera said as she gave the Amazon one last stare. Then, she turned, and walked out of the room. Once she disappeared, Beacon shifted her focus back to Wonder Woman who, in turn, looked back at her. Despite the latter's impassive frown, the Halfa easily noticed the embarrassment she was feeling on the inside.

"Don't say it," insisted the Amazon.

Beacon raised a curious eyebrow. "Don't say what?"

Wonder Woman turned her head back to the door and clenched her jaw for a moment. "I told you so." She replied.

With that, she too walked out of the room. As she passed Beacon though, she either did not see or just simply ignored the Halfa's triumphant grin.

After leaving the Watchtower on Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet, The Amazon spent several minutes debriefing Shayera on their mission. In Beacon's opinion, Wonder Woman had done quite a remarkable job at remaining calm and collected during the whole endeavor, Shayera, however, did not remove her eyes from the window through the entire brief, but she did occasionally respond with subtle grunts and a few 'Uh-huh's. Once the brief was over though, Wonder Woman wanted to know if Shayera had any further questions. However, when she did not answer, Wonder Woman decided that she was going to ask instead. "You're doing this because you want to prove yourself, aren't you?" She waited a couple of seconds in case Shayera was going to answer, but when she did not, she pressed on. "Well, you don't have to; you were forgiven a long time ago."

Another few seconds passed, and then Shayera finally spoke. "Did I ever ask for your forgiveness?"

Beacon saw Wonder Woman tighten her grip on the controls, but soon the Amazon relaxed, and became silent. Beacon had a feeling that Shayera's animosity was directed solely towards Wonder Woman, but she was not exactly sure. She had not interacted with Shayera much since she rejoined the League.

At that moment, something stirred in her brain, and eventually, it brought her back to that mission to the future. There, she had met the future members of the Justice League, and one of them was Rex Stewart, Shayera and John Stewart's son. Beacon knew they were once close; after all, stories travel fast in the League. Thing was, before Shayera came back, John had begun a relationship with Vixen. Now, because of that, Beacon was not sure if the future had changed. Her optimistic side told her that the future was not set in stone, and she firmly wanted to believe that, but another side of her wondered if that fierce half-human, half-Thanagarian she met would ever come to exist.

Stop thinking that. Focus on the mission! The sound of her own voice was so sudden; it made her head jolt slightly.

"Rachel? You alright?"

"Huh?" the Halfa turned to see Shayera looking at her with a hint of concern.

"I said are you alright?" she repeated. "You seemed startled for a second."

"O-oh," Beacon stuttered, her cheeks growing warm. "I-I'm fine, just focusing on the mission is all." Shayera nodded and made to turn back towards the window, before she completed the movement though, Beacon asked. "So Shay, how is it… y'know… being back in the League."

Shayera glanced away for a second, then turned back to her Beacon and shrugged. "Other than the new Watchtower and the new members, nothing's really changed. Although I have to say that it is nice to not have to deal with all the missions personally."

Beacon nodded and was about to ask another question, but at that exact moment, Wonder Woman made a very important announcement. "We're here." She said firmly. "Get ready."

Themyscira

Once Beacon stepped onto Themyscira's beach, her eyes instantly feasted upon the dense and yet strikingly beautiful vegetation that surrounded the island. As she overlooked the forest and into mountain top beyond, she saw towering white buildings that seemed to reflect the full moon's glow. Not to mention, there were also flickers of red and gold, which Beacon assumed to be from burning torches.

A shuffle in the sand made the Halfa turn her head. She noticed Wonder Woman standing next to her with longing in her eyes. It was as though the Amazon was having feelings of nostalgia about being back in her home.

"You seem really glad to be back, Diana." Beacon observed innocently.

Wonder Woman turned to her, and her eyes seemed to sparkle. "Oh, believe me. I am beyond delighted to be back." She replied. She shifted her gaze up and down the beach. "I remember some nights I would come to this very beach… and just gaze at the stars." This time, Beacon noticed something else in her eyes, something resembling… sadness.

Beacon turned her eyes up to the night sky as well, and saw millions upon millions of stars shining in the dense darkness. As she moved her gaze from star to star, she felt a weight of longing press into her heart. She would never see this in Miami, not unless she flew way higher than the city's skyline. Despite that tiny grievance though, she still loved the city very much.

"Uh, hate to ruin your homecoming, princess," said Shayera, breaking the two out of their reverie. "But don't we have a maniac in a tin can to stop?" Wonder Woman blinked at her for a moment. Then she nodded, and replaced her sad and somewhat vulnerable image with the strength and courage of an Amazon.

"Right," she agreed firmly before setting her gaze to the buildings on the mountain. "To the gates!" She kicked off the ground and soared high into the air. As Beacon watched her go, she was reminded of how much she admired the Amazon for her sheer conviction. A spark seemed to have ignited within her that made her long for a fight. Therefore, without any further delay, Beacon leapt into the air and swiftly followed Wonder Woman's lead.

It did not take long for the three heroes to reach the gates, which turned out to be located in the heart of the island. Once they made their descent, Beacon felt the biting chill of her ghost sense loom over her, and eventually force her to release a sharp gasp. Below them, the armor-clad amazons were trying their best to barricade the ginormous double doors, either with pillars they fashioned out of wood or even their own bodies. However, despite their efforts one demon with large wings and claws managed to seep through and land directly before a tall blonde woman in a white combat dress.

"Mother!" Beacon heard Wonder Woman shout before she kicked into another gear, swooped in, and punched the demon with enough force to send it flying back into Tartarus.

"Diana?" Queen Hippolyta huffed as Wonder Woman, Beacon, and Shayera landed on the ground. The Halfa had realized her identity after the Amazon yelled her maternal title to the heavens. "You know you're not supposed to set foot on this island! The gods have decreed that…"

"The gods are decreeing stuff all the time around here!" Shayera snorted. However, she seemed to regret her statement when she saw the anguish on Hippolyta's face. "Ma'am," She added in a much softer tone.

A vicious roar from the gates made the group turn their heads. The demons on the other side were making a tremendous effort in an attempt to overpower the amazons. Some demons had even managed to knock a few amazons away.

"I have to go into Tartarus and stop all of this!" Wonder Woman declared.

"I won't allow it!" declined Hippolyta in a similar tone.

Wonder Woman turned back and shot her mother a look. "Neither of us have any choice in the matter, Mother." Queen Hippolyta eyed her daughter firmly, but eventually realized the truth in her words and backed up.

Wonder Woman made to leap off towards Tartarus, but Hippolyta grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Wait!" The queen said quickly. "If you are to attempt such a feat you should have access to your full power."

Wonder Woman raised her eyebrows, and from beyond her, Beacon did as well. First, she found out that the Amazon was forbidden to set foot on her home, and now she was being a witness to her unlocking her full power. What other surprises did this night have in store for them?

After that thought, Beacon refocused her attention when Hippolyta spoke again. "Because you stole your armor and lasso, you were never told of the power they process."

Oookay… there's another surprise. Beacon tallied in her mind.

Hippolyta raised her index finger to the red star on Wonder Woman's tiara. The instant the queen made contact, the tiara, as well as the Amazon's bracelets, belt and lasso, all lit in a fantastic display of golden light. When the light finally dimmed, Wonder Woman glanced at her equipment and then turned back to her mother.

"When the time comes," said Hippolyta, "you'll know everything you need to know." Wonder Woman nodded before immediately stepping towards Tartarus, leaving her mother with her two teammates. "Bring my daughter back to me." It was not a plea, but a command.

"Nothing to worry about," Shayera smirked. "She's almost as good at kicking but as I am." With that, the Thanagarian began to make her way as well.

"Ma'am," Beacon quickly addressed before she bolted after her teammates.

One by one, Wonder Woman, Shayera, and Beacon leapt through the enormous gates, and entered the fiery inferno that was Tartarus.

Being inside Tartarus was a new experience for Beacon, and not in a good way. She had no idea that such a degree of heat could exist. However, the heat was not the only problem, and as Beacon narrowed her eyes, she noticed a swarm of demons flying straight at her, Wonder Woman, and Shayera.

"Rachel," began Wonder Woman sharply. "Do what you can to thin the herd."

"Got it!" Beacon confirmed. Maintaining her flight pattern, the Halfa stretched her hand and fired her signature energy beams in rapid secession. Her attack flew straight at the demons, and managed to land squarely on a few of them. Unfortunately, Beacon realized not all demons were created equal as the rest managed to avoid being hit. As they approached even closer to the demons, Beacon, Wonder Woman and Shayera all exchanged quick looks, and then they braced themselves for close combat.

The demons all scattered as the heroes knocked back the initial contact, but their numbers advantage eventually caused the three women to separate. Beacon swung her leg hard and hit a demon right on the jaw. The creature squealed like a pig and then just simply dropped out of the air. Despite her success, Beacon was not granted any reprieve as another demon swooped in almost immediately and took a wild swing at her, but the Halfa easily dodged by ducking her head. Based on her observation, the demon's attacks seemed instinctual at best. Not once could she detect any hints of proper technique or strategy. These things are just flailing their arms around hoping to hit something. She remarked internally.

With that thought, Beacon closed the distance between herself and the demon. She then planted her hand right on its chest, and fired her energy at point-blank range. Beacon watched the demon get driven backwards into another group of demons, knocking them over like a set of cruelly designed bowling pins.

A jolt in her mind told Beacon that something was approaching fast from behind her. Although, even before she attempted to turn around, the screech told her everything she needed to know. Apparently, the demons had no idea what it meant to be subtle.

Beacon concentrated, and then felt her body go intangible. A split second later, she watched the demon try to grab her as it went past, and when it realized that it did not succeed in getting its claws on her, Beacon reformed her body, and pulled the demon into a headlock. The demon did its best to break free from the Halfa's grasp, whether by screeching at the tip of its lungs, or by flaying all of its limbs in rabid fashion.

After Beacon tightened her hold on the demon, a grunt of effort made her turn her head up. Floating several feet above was Shayera, and Beacon just watched her swing her mace and knock back two demons with one swing. At that moment, Beacon knew exactly how to depose of the demon she was holding.

"Shayera!" As the Thanagarian turned towards her, Beacon had already moved the demon from her hold and heaved it up straight her. "Batter up!" she concluded.

Shayera eyed the demon intensely. Once she deemed it close enough, she raised her mace again, and brought it down right on the demon's skull.

CRACK!

The sound came directly from the demon's head. Shortly after, it went limp and fell straight down into the fiery inferno below. While Beacon watched the demon fall, Shayera seemed to have something else on her mind.

"It's getting kinda hot in here." She remarked.

Beacon turned her gaze back to the Thanagarian. "Uh… Shay, I don't know if you've noticed," she paused to take a quick glance at her surroundings, "but we are in a world of fire."

Shayera pressed her lips together before responding. "Point taken, but still." Due to the wings on her back, Beacon failed to see the demon sneak up behind her, and therefore was unable to warn Shayera before the demon clamped down around her feathers and yanked her backwards, causing Shayera to yell in pain.

"Shay!" Beacon shouted before speeding off to help. Before she could reach the Thanagarian however, the demon pulling her stopped and stared at the feathers. Then surprisingly, it let go of Shayera's wing and backed away into another group demons. Beacon blinked at what had just happened, but when she got a closer look, she noticed the demons shared the same horror-filled expressions. When she wondered what had brought on their fear, the Halfa only had to look at Shayera, whose smirk was arguably the most prominent she had seen the whole night.

"That's right," said the winged-woman. "I'm an angel." As she said it, Shayera spread her wings completely outwards. The demons before her all flinched back and most even averted their eyes from Shayera. It was like the Thanagarian's very presence was causing them physical pain.

"You can mess with me of you want to," Shayera continued with a shrug. Then her expression turned serious, "but I don't think you wanna mess with the boss." She finished by firmly pointing her index finger upward, and Beacon knew she was pointing beyond the ceiling of Tartarus. Without another glance, the demons all scattered in separate directions. The way they flew frantically away honestly brought a small smile to Beacon's lips.

Another grunt brought the Halfa's attention to Wonder Woman, who delivered a tightly balled-up punch right into the center of a demon's face. It screeched with pain and clutched its face with both of its claws. Then, the demon spun around and blindingly flew off after its kin.

With the immediate threat now gone, Beacon and Wonder Woman regrouped with Shayera. "Maybe they were right to be afraid of you." Beacon praised.

Shayera looked at her and shrugged. "If we're lucky, they'll all be that dumb."

The three women exchanged looks, and then continued their way through Tartartus.

"Diana, I have to ask." Beacon began after several minutes. Wonder Woman turned and eyed her curiously. "Why aren't you allowed to set foot on Themyscira?"

Wonder Woman frowned, and Beacon saw her jaw muscle clench tightly underneath her skin. "Remember when I told you about Faust?" Beacon nodded. "I knew I had to save my home and my people… but I also knew I couldn't do it alone. So I-I… I had to break the most sacred law in Themyscira, just to save it."

Beacon thought deeply about Wonder Woman's words. If she said that she could not save Themyscria alone, she naturally would have brought in the rest of the Justice League. Thing was, at the time, Shayera was the only other female member. The other five members were all male.

"You… you brought men to the island." The Halfa realized.

Slowly, Wonder Woman nodded. She then shifted her gaze back to the front. "To be honest, I can live with the banishment." Wonder Woman admitted. "Right now, I'm more focused on finding Faust."

"Wait, Faust?" Shayera asked sharply. "We should free Hades first."

At the mention of the name, Beacon saw anger creep onto Wonder Woman's face. "Hades can take care of himself." She scoffed. "I'm not here to help him."

"You're not?" snapped Beacon and Shayera at the same time.

"Then what are you here for?" asked Shayera immediately after.

Wonder Woman shot her a look. "You know what I mean."

"Actually Diana, I really don't."

The Amazon narrowed her eyes at Shayera, but before she could say anything else, Beacon chimed in. "Shay does have a point Diana. I thought our mission was to put Hades back on his throne."

"We'll worry about that after Faust is dealt with."

"Diana, be practical." Shayera advised. "We're going to need Hades if we're gonna take Faust down."

Wonder Woman rounded on her, her face twisting in anger. "We don't need his help!" As Wonder Woman slowly crept her way closer to Shayera, Beacon floated in between them and gently placed her hands on the Amazon's shoulders.

"Diana, please calm down," said Beacon. Wonder Woman stared directly into her eyes, but to her relief, she felt the Amazon loosen her shoulders.

"Look," Shayera spoke again. "I-We can't make this decision for you Diana, but however you want to play it; we'll back up you up." She paused to look at Beacon, "Right, Rach?" she added.

"…Right," Beacon nodded, and then turned to the Amazon. "We've got your back."

Wonder Woman looked between her teammates for a moment before giving her firm reply. "Then it's Faust. The only problem is finding him."

Upon hearing that, Shayera raised a somewhat devious smirk. "Oh, that's not a problem." Then she flew off without any explanation.

Beacon and Wonder Woman exchanged looks, before hurrying after the Thanagarian.

As it turned out, Shayera's plan was to interrogate one of the locals. After reaching the edge of a deep abyss, the mace wielder instructed Beacon and Wonder Woman to wait for her. Then Shayera swooped down into the abyss, and returned with a grey-skinned demon that literally appeared to be skin and bones.

Shayera let go of the demon and he fell to the ground with a hard thud. He took a moment to recollect himself before turning his head to see the three heroes glaring at him.

"Where's Faust?" demanded Shayera.

The demon slowly got up and rubbed his head. "Let me think," he said. "Oh yeah, he's over there." He turned to point at some random direction. "No, wait… He's over there." He pointed in a different direction.

Beacon realized the demon was lying the second he opened his mouth. Perhaps another tactic was necessary to get the answers out of him. The Halfa glanced over to Shayera, who seemed to have come to the same conclusion.

"One more answer," she declared as she lifted her mace over her head, "and it better be the right one."

Strangely, the demon was not fazed by the sight of Shayera winding her weapon back. "Or what? You'll killed me?" He retorted sarcastically. "Gosh, I might end up suffering eternal torment as punishment for my sins… Oh wait, I already am!"

Shayera narrowed her eyes dangerously and looked just about ready to follow through with her threat. However, before she could, Wonder Woman took a step forward, her lasso in her hand.

"Let me try." The Amazon looped her lasso around the demon and pulled him closer towards her. To everyone's surprise, the golden rope began to glow. "Tell me your name." she said to the demon.

"…Abnegazar." The demon replied plainly.

"Tell me where to find Faust, Abnegazar." Wonder Woman commanded.

"In Hades' library," he answered. Wonder Woman looked at her teammates, who both shrugged before urging her to continue.

Wonder Woman turned back to Abnegazar and made one more demand. "Lead us there."

"… Okay." Abnegazar stepped off towards the abyss and took flight. Beacon, Wonder Woman, and Shayera quickly made to follow. After a couple seconds, the Halfa moved closer to the Amazon with an aching question that she desperately wanted answered.

"How'd you do that?"

Wonder Woman turned to her and merely shrugged. "Magic lasso; who knew?"

They eventually found their way into the bowels of Tartarus. Suprisingly this place was completely devoid of the fire and blazing heat. To be honest, Beacon could not complain.

Standing directly before Beacon, Wonder Woman and Shayera was a miniature version of the Gates of Tartarus, but the vibe it was radiating was just as terrifying as its larger counterpart.

"This could be a trap." The Halfa announced as she turned to her teammates.

Shayera nodded before stepping towards Abnegazar. "Alright, you; is there anything else we should know?"

The demon merely stared at her impatiently. "Yeah," he said. "You really, really shouldn't go in there."

He then paused to turn and glare up at Wonder Woman.

"Now will you please take this rope off of me?" he demanded. "I'm a demon… the truth hurts."

After releasing Abnegazar, Beacon, Wonder Woman and Shayera pushed open the large doors and stepped inside Hades' library. At first glance, the Halfa was able to take in the seemingly rows of cobblestone bookshelves. However at the end of each shelf was a skeleton enveloped in a shell of fire.

Beacon found herself keeping her eyes on the skeletons as she walked deeper into the library. She could not escape the feeling that they were watching her and her teammates. While she had no evidence so support that theory, she braced herself just in case. Thankfully, if the pile of bones were to attack them, she was confident that her sensing abilities would detect them.

"Whoa!" the sound nearly made Beacon jump out of her skin. She reeled around as fast as she could and dropped into a fighting stance. However, instead of seeing the skeletons or any sort of threat, she only saw Shayera throwing a book away from her.

"Shay!" Beacon hissed under her breath.

"Sorry… sorry," Shayera replied, looking completely embarrassed.

Once the small fiasco had subsided, they made their way towards the end of the library. Once there, Wonder Woman peeked her head around a corner and jumped back almost immediately. Wanting to know what she saw, Beacon stepped forward and stuck her head out from the shelf. She saw a giant black mass sitting at a table by a wall. Beacon felt a flurry of accomplishment as she realized that they had found their target. The only thing to do now was to come up with a plan to defeat him.

"Okay, I'll turn invisible and get the jump on him." The Halfa suggested. Instead of waiting for a reply, she began to inch further outward, but before she could get too far, Wonder Woman grabbed her arm and swiftly pulled her back. "What are you doing?" Beacon muttered under her breath.

"We're not going to attack him." Wonder Woman answered.

The statement caused Beacon's jaw to drop. "Y-You can't be serious?" Ever since the start of this mission, the Amazon had made some questionable choices, but what she suggested was the straw the broke the camel's back. Beacon wondered if the imbalance of magic had taken its toll.

"Rachel, the Annihilator is fueled by aggression." Wonder Woman explained. "We would only make it stronger if we attack it."

Beacon blinked for a second as Wonder Woman's words clicked in her mind. However, there were still nagging concerns. "But Faust's soul possesses the suit. What if he attacks us with his magic?"

Wonder Woman pressed her lips into a line. "Then we'll have to defend ourselves." She answered plainly, and when she saw the unconvinced look on Beacon's face, she shrugged, "I'm sorry, that's all I have. To be honest, I am making this up as I go." Then before anyone could stop her, she began making her way towards Faust. Beacon was utterly dumbfounded as she watched Wonder Woman go. She turned back to look desperately at Shayera, but the Thanagarian shrugged as well before walking off. Realizing that she was alone with her opinions regarding Wonder Woman's plan, Beacon let out a soft sigh, and hurried after her teammates.

They approached Faust as cautiously as they could, but even with their light footsteps, the giant suit of armor was still able to detect them.

"Incredible. Wouldn't you agree, princess?" said Faust. The eerie tone of his voice was enough to raise the hair on the back of the Beacon's neck. "The Lost Scrolls of Herculaneum…" Faust continued. "Merlin's 'Juvenilia'… Pierre Menard's 'Don Quixote'."

There was a pause, and then Faust stood up, and turned to face the three heroes. The Annihilator had not changed much since the last time she saw it on the Watchtower. The only thing that seemed out of place was the floating head of an elderly man inside the helmet.

"These dark tomes make the Necronomicon look like a children's book." He paused again and Beacon could see Faust glance over the library. "There's enough arcana here to quench even my thirst for knowledge… At least for the next 5000 years or so."

From her right, Beacon heard Shayera scoff. "Why would anybody bother taking over this dump?"

Faust snarled. "To get revenge on Hades, for betraying me," he replied. "I planned to torture him for a few millennia, but Hades tried to make a deal…" He gestured towards the library. "He told me about this place; He kept his end of the bargain… but I didn't keep mine… I still don't understand why he was surprised."

"Well, whoopty freakin' doo." Beacon mocked. "Don't you realize what you've done by taking Hades off his throne? You've disturbed-"

"The magical balance, I know." Faust interrupted smugly. "Don't insult my intelligence, child." Beacon clenched both of her hands into fists, but restrained herself enough to allow Faust to continue. "Frankly, I don't really care, because now I'm already in Heaven… Figuratively speaking."

"Hoped you enjoyed it," said Shayera, holding up her mace. "We're revoking your library card." With that, she, Beacon and Wonder Woman slowly stalked their way towards Faust.

"Oh, you want to fight." He said, unamused. "Not in the mood." As he raised his hand, Beacon braced herself for an energy beam, a blast of fire, or anything to fly out of it. However, nothing of the sort came. Instead, the very ground beneath the three heroes began to swirl under their feet. Then, like a tornado, the ground rose high over their heads and covered them in a dense, unforgiving darkness.

The world would not stop spinning. Beacon felt herself being tossed and turned over against her will. The only thing she could do was listen to Wonder Woman and Shayera's screams rushing in and out of focus.

Then, from out of nowhere, a small dot of light appeared directly in front of her, moving at the same rate she was. Before she could ponder where it came from, the light began to increase in both size and brightness. It eventually became too overbearing and Beacon had to put up a hand to shield her eyes. Then she saw something else appear in the light. Through her fingers, it looked like a silhouette, but she could not be a hundred percent sure. She lowered her hand a tiny amount so her eyes could regain focus.

That was when she saw it, or rather, him. At the center of the light was a man's torso. He was wearing a long blue cloak that draped over his square shoulders. On his head was a brimmed hat that was tilted at a slight angle, completely covering his eyes.

At first glance, Beacon thought the man was the Question, but she dismissed it when she realized, while the man may be able to do many things, appearing in a flash of light was not one of them.

She and the man gazed at each other for a long moment, and then the latter extended his hand, covered in a pure white glove.

Caution warned her it could be a trick, a sick joke by Faust. But somehow, she did not believe that to be true. Slowly, the Halfa extended her own hand and reached out. Just when she felt her fingertips meet the man's, there was another flash of light that engulfed everything…

And then, she felt herself falling.

The air was refreshingly cool as Beacon, Wonder Woman, and Shayera emerged from out of nowhere. The ground before them was covered in a layer of white snow. While the sight of snow was infinitely better than the fires of Tartarus, it made Beacon feel very uneasy because she did not know if it was an inch deep or several feet deep.

Concentrating hard, she slowed her descent and gently floated down to the ground. When she finally did land, the snow crunched beneath her feet. There was another crunching sound next to her and the Halfa turned to see that Wonder Woman had touched down next to her. It seemed the Amazon was also able to slow her descent…

But then, Beacon heard a loud groan coming from her other side. She whipped around towards the sound and saw Shayera sprawled on the ground underneath a layer of loose snow.

"You alright, Shay?" Beacon asked immediately.

Shayera let out another groan, but steadily got up to her hands and knees. As she raised her head, Beacon offered her hand, which the winged-woman accepted. "Yeah," Shayera replied, allowing Beacon to pull her back up.

A gust of wind blew past and Shayera immediately reacted by hugging her arms and rubbing them vigorously. While her teeth chattered away, she looked swiftly at both Beacon and Wonder Woman.

"Okay... I get why you'renot cold." She said to Beacon. Then she turned to Wonder Woman. "But you? Aren't you cold in that outfit?"

Wonder Woman and Beacon exchanged looks before the former replied. "Not really."

"It's probably the magic around your outfit," Beacon rationalized. "It's been protecting you from the environments."

"I think it's a lot simpler than that," said Shayera. "I think it's just the fact that the princess doesn't get cold. The princess doesn't even sweat in the fiery pits of Tartarus."

Wonder Woman shot her a look. "I do too sweat." She argued.

Shayera rolled her eyes. "Please, you glow," she informed. "I wouldn't be surprised if you don't even-"

"Argh!"

Beacon, Wonder Woman and Shayera turned towards the sound of the scream, and realized it came from beyond the surrounding mountains. The scream belonged to a man, who seemed be to in deep agony.

"Who do you think that is?" asked Beacon, turning back to her teammates.

She saw Wonder Woman pause for a moment, and then she narrowed her eyes dangerously. "I have a hunch," she muttered. "Let's go see if I'm right."

With that, the three heroes kicked off the ground and headed straight for the mountain.

They eventually passed through the mountain's peak and entered into some sort of cavern. At the center of the cavern was a rock with a man chained to its surface. Beacon could not make out the figure's features due to the swarm of vultures hovering directly before him.

"Well, well, looks like my hunch was correct," said Wonder Women, although her tone suggested she was rather disappointed.

Eventually Beacon understood what had caused Hades to cry out in agony. The vultures before him were digging their sharp beaks into his flesh, hoping to shred him into pieces.

"Get away from him!" Shayera shouted. All at once, the vultures turned and glared at them with their demonic yellow eyes.

Beacon saw her opportunity and took aim at a vulture. Her energy beam hit it dead center and the bird dropped out of the air like a stone. The other vultures stared at their fallen kin for a moment, and then they all let out a furious screech and charged at the three heroes.

Without hesitation, Beacon, Wonder Woman and Shayera all moved in unison to meet the vultures. Ultimately, the birds proved to be nothing more than a nuisance and Beacon was able to defeat them with just one attack. Before long, Beacon and her teammates had managed to take down at least half the vultures and, consequently, drive the other half away. With the birds gone, Beacon was able to take in Hades for the first time.

The ruler of the Underworld was a tall man with long black hair and a goatee. The vultures seemed to have done a considerable amount of damage to his entire body. Parts of his clothing had been ripped away and Beacon could clearly make out the angry flesh underneath.

"Did Faust send you?" asked the ruler of the Underworld. "Did he decide the vultures weren't enough?"

"…Uh, seriously?" Beacon questioned. "We just saved you from becoming dinner! The least you can do is acknowledge that."

At that moment, she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. She turned her head and saw Wonder Woman staring back at her. The Amazon gave her a nod and the Halfa knew she was taking over.

Once Beacon took a step back, Wonder Woman rounded on Hades with nothing but contempt in her eyes. "They aren't enough, monster." She stated before leaping up into the air and smashing the chain that pinned Hades to the rock.

Hades landed with a rather loud thud and immediately began breaking the cuffs that once restrained him. Then, he turned back and gave Wonder Woman an eerie smile. "It appears I am in your debt, my child." As he said it, Beacon noticed his wounds had started to heal and his clothes were regenerating.

The feat did not seem to faze Wonder Woman however, as she just scoffed. "Thank the gods, Hades. If it were up to me…but even here there must be order."

"Faust doesn't care what happens to this place," said Shayera.

"Or any one he hurts," added Beacon.

"Hm…" Hades mused as he made his way over to the three heroes. "No one ever appreciates your work until you're gone."

Wonder Woman clenched her jaw muscles before responding. "Come on, we're putting you back on the throne." Based on her tone, Beacon could tell it pained the Amazon to say that.

Meanwhile, Hades' smile broadened as he said. "Or die trying?"

"Not gonna happen!" Shayera shot down immediately.

Hades eyed her for a moment before shrugging lazily. Then, he raised his arms and gusts of wind began to swirl around then. As lights began flashing from every direction, Beacon realized Hades was teleporting them back to his library.

However, right before they left, one thought had crossed her mind:

What is it with these guys and their swirling tornadoes?

Moments later, they reappeared back at the entrance of the library. Once Beacon had regained a hold on her senses, she turned to the rest of the group. "Alright, this time can we please come up with a plan?" she pleaded to Wonder Woman.

"Yeah, seriously," Shayera agreed quickly. "No more running in blinded."

Wonder Woman eyed both of her teammates intently before rolling her eyes. "Fine," she groaned, "We'll do it your way."

"You know, that was a great display of companionship," Hades said from behind them. "But I would like my throne back sometime today."

Wonder Woman reeled around and glared at the fallen Olympian. "I'm only going to say this once." She hissed, pointing a finger at his chest. "You'll do what we say, when we say it."

Hades laughed. "My child, what makes you think I am under any obligation to submit to you?"

"Simple," Wonder Woman answered. She grabbed hold of the lasso on her hip and it glowed at her touch. "You can either help us or I tie you up somewhere and pick you up when we're finished with Faust."

There was a moment of silence as the Amazon locked eyes with Hades. Beacon could have sworn she saw the latter raise a fulsome smirk, almost as if the god was proud of Wonder Woman's threat.

"Very well, you win." Hades finally said. Despite his assurance, Wonder Woman kept her glare on him for a couple more seconds before finally letting go of her lasso. The Amazon then turned back to Beacon and Shayera.

"What's the plan?" She asked.

Beacon nodded. "I think we should do something to rile him up first," she suggested, "get him to drop his guard."

"I got it!" Shayera chimed in. Then she raised her mace before adding, "I'll light the books on fire, that'll get his attention."

"Now hold on a moment!" Hades insisted sharply. The three heroes turned to him and saw the surprise in his eyes. "You are actually planning to destroy my tomes? I've spent an eternity collecting every one!"

"What's the big deal?" Shayera questioned. "It's not like you don't have another to start over."

"…or you could just save the space and get the books into a tablet." Beacon shrugged. "Just sayin'."

Hades glared daggers at both of them before finding his path blocked once again by Wonder Woman. "Forget it, Hades." She advised. "This is happening whether you like it or not."

Hades' glare turned into a deep scrawl. However, he eventually backed off and remained silent as the three heroes went into the finer details of their plan.

With everything established, Shayera slowly pushed the door open and they all slipped inside. The library remained unchanged since the last time they were here, but things were about to heat up… literally. Beacon turned exchanged looks with Shayera. Then the two of them nodded, and the latter began walking forward. She watched the Thanagarian extend her mace, where sparks of electricity began swirling the head of the weapon.

A jolt shot out of the mace and struck one of the books, instantly setting it alight. Within seconds, the flames completely engulfed the book, and just as quickly began to ignite every other book in the shelf.

As Shayera repeated the process to every other bookshelf in the library, Beacon felt surges of anxiety and guilt invade into her conscience.

Ari, I'm sorry for letting this happen. She knew she former girlfriend would absolutely explode if she saw all those book being burned into ashes. The Halfa felt her face fall into a deep frown. Former girlfriend. That realization still hurt her very much.

"My books!" Faust's shout of despair jolted Beacon out of her reverie. Once she had regained her focus back to the matter at hand, the Halfa's eyes immediately honed in on the wall of fire that swallowed everything in its path.

"Alright, we have his attention," said Wonder Woman from beside her. Beacon turned to the Amazon to realize she was addressing Hades. "Time for your part of the plan."

Hades smirked at her for a moment and then leapt through the flickering flames. Beacon heard a loud slam, which was then quickly followed by Faust's agonized cry.

Now that their plan was well in motion, Beacon turned to Wonder Woman and extended her hand, "You ready?" she asked

"Ready." Wonder Woman nodded immediately and grabbed hold.

Beacon remained silent for a moment as she concentrated. Then, both she and Wonder Woman vanished from sight.

"This time I'll leave nothing behind for me to torture!" Faust yelled as he fired a purple energy beam from his palm. The attack hit Hades with enough force to blast him off his feet, and then sent him crashing through a burning bookshelf. The man then shifted his gaze and aimed at Shayera. Luckily, her reaction was just fast enough to avoid being hit. She was then able to avoid two more shots before Shayera noticed a golden rope loop around Faust's arm.

The rope jerked violently and dragged Faust away from Shayera. The Thanagarian followed the length of the rope until she saw Beacon and Wonder Woman doing their best to restrain Faust.

"Give up, Faust!" Wonder Woman barked. "We know the secret of the armor; it's fueled by rage."

"So as long as we don't fight you, you're powerless!" Beacon finished.

For a moment, Faust merely stared at them, seemingly taken aback. But before either Beacon or Wonder Woman could react, Faust grabbed the lasso with his other hand and yanked, pulling both women off their feet and crashing into another bookshelf.

"That was before I fixed it." Faust remarked with a devious smirk.

"Good to know." Faust whipped around the second he heard Shayera's voice, but was already too late as she swung her mace directly at his chest. The impact knocked Faust on his back and he slid a couple of feet. However, he was able to recover fast enough to blast two more energy beams from his hands.

Without much thought, Shayera swerved to avoid the beams, but then she realized they were nowhere close to where she was. Instead, the beams continued all the way up to the ceiling, and hit two of the hanging skeletons from before. The beams did not stop there; they twisted and hit the surrounding skeletons.

One by one, the skeletons began to move on their own accord. Then, as if they had eyes and muscles, they all honed in on Shayera and dove straight towards her.

Fortunately, the skeletons shattered with just one hit. But as Shayera threw swing after swing, there seemed to be no end to them. From out of nowhere, a punch caught her in the cheek and it threw her off. Before she could regain a sense of her surroundings, the mass of bone and fire had descended upon her.

"Well… so much for that," Beacon groaned as she got back to a sitting position.

Beside her, Wonder Woman quickly shoved the piles of splinters and planks and kept her focus on the battle. "We'll just have to improvise; let's go." She stated firmly.

Together she and Beacon shot off straight towards Faust. Sadly, Faust noticed them approaching and fired two more energy beams at them.

"MOVE!" Beacon shouted before immediately shifting her whole body aside. The beam was so close her that she estimated she had missed Faust's magic by an inch.

A cry from beside Beacon made her heart jump into her throat. She whipped around just in time to see Wonder Woman topple to the ground. To Beacon's horror, strange white strips had appeared out of nowhere and constricted the Amazon from head to toe.

At that moment, Beacon wanted to immediately tend to Wonder Woman, but doing so could leave her exposed to Faust. Fortunately, the Halfa realized she had the power to kill two birds with one stone, or at least hold the larger one off until she could free Wonder Woman.

Beacon took in a breath, and when she exhaled, she saw three duplicates appear in front of her. All of them immediately shot off towards Faust while she descended to the ground and quickly worked to free Wonder Woman from her bonds.

As the three copies of Beacon floated before Faust, he paused for a moment and smirked at all of them. "My, my… aren't you full of surprises." He said deviously.

"Whatever you say, Faust," said one of the duplicates.

"But you're going…"said the one directly next to her.

"…Down." The last one finished. Moving once more in unison, the duplicates raised their arms and fired at Faust. Three pairs of energy beams soared through the air and hit him right on the chest. Faust roared with pain and spun completely around, leaving his back exposed instead.

Now feeling more confident in their attacks, Beacon's duplicates slowly drifted closer to Faust. Suddenly, he whirled around and raised his arm to block all six energy beams. Then Faust raised his second hand and retaliated with yet another energy beam of his own. This time, as his attack continued to shoot out of his palm, Faust made a sweeping motion that dragged the beam across all three duplicates, causing them to cry out before disappearing one by one.

"OW!" Beacon shouted, clutching onto her midriff for dear life.

"What's wrong?" demanded Wonder Woman. With her efforts combined with Beacon's, they were able to rip the wrappings free. When they were about halfway done however, the Halfa suddenly doubled over in pain.

"Y-yeah," Beacon grunted, her face still twisted with deep discomfort. "M-my duplicates are gone."

"And you'll be next!" Beacon and Wonder Woman turned to see Faust raise his massive foot. Then, from out of nowhere, an orange energy beam blasted Faust right on the chest. The man roared in pain and was forced backwards.

Beacon and Wonder Woman turned their gaze again, and in doing so, they discovered that Hades was the one that fired the attack from his mouth. Although Beacon was relieved by it, she also knew the window was closing fast. She turned her attention back to Wonder Woman and resumed breaking her out of her bounds. It took a second longer for the Amazon to realize what she was doing, but when she did, she joined in as well.

True to Beacon's instincts, the reprieve was ultimately short-lived. After stumbling back a few feet, Faust lifted his hands, blocking Hades' attack with one and firing his own energy beam with the other. The purple beam found its mark on Hades and sent the god flying into the wall. Effectively pinning him and making him scream in agony.

An evil smirk rose on Faust's face as the library was filled with Hades' screams. It was at that moment that he realized leaving him to the vultures was a mistake; he should have been the one to do the torturing from the start. Oh well, better make up for lost time. Faust thought cruelly.

Something tapped against the side of his head. In surprise, Faust ceased his attack and turned in that direction. He noticed that the ground was littered with pieces of flaming bones, and walking directly over them was Shayera, her arm extended and her mace at the ready.

"My mace disrupts magic," she informed matter-of-factly. "What's that suit made of again?" Without waiting for answer, she leapt into the air and brought her mace down on Faust.

"Ah!" he yelled as the mace breached the armor on his chest, leaving a gaping hole for a stream of golden light to shine through. Shayera swung again, and again, and again. The hole on Faust's chest began to grow larger with each successful hit. Hoping to end it once and for all with one final blow, she cocked her mace back further to increase its potential energy.

Unfortunately, before Shayera could deliver the finishing blow, Faust had managed to grab her with his giant hand and begun slowly crushing her. In desperation, she tried to pry open Faust's grip, but it was all in vain. Faust's hold on her tightened even more and Shayera let out a loud cry of pain. Consequently, as the tremendous pressure overwhelmed her, her grip on her mace slipped and eventually fell out of her reach.

"SHAYERA!" Beacon cried as her friend continued to yell and squirm in pain. Then, she heard a loud clunk and noticed Shayera's mace had fallen right at her feet. Without further thought, Beacon snatched the mace up and took off to rescue her friend.

"LET HER GO!"

Faust heard her and merely responded with another energy beam. Beacon, unfortunately, had no time to swerve out of the way. Therefore, she settled for holding the mace, hoping that its Nth metal properties would be enough to protect her.

To her relief, the mace did in fact stop the beam from potentially frying her, but there was a major drawback, the mace did not stop the impact force from driving her back. Beacon tried to push with all of her might, but the best she could do was merely slow the beam down.

She just wasn't strong enough.

Then, without warning, she stopped. Not because she suddenly gained the strength to push on, but because there was an opposing force pushing on her back, steadying her. Even though Beacon knew who had come to her aid, she turned her head around just to be sure. And sure enough, directly behind her was Wonder Woman, beaming at her with her fiercely beautiful blue eyes.

Beacon felt a smile tugging at her lips as she turned her attention back to Faust and, with the help of Wonder Woman's steady hands, began to push the beam back. Further ahead, the Halfa noticed Shayera had fallen limp in Faust's hand. Beacon could only hope that it was not too late.

"I said," Beacon began as she got closer and closer to Faust. "Let. Her. GO!"

For a moment, she saw Faust's eyes bulge out in shock, and then she slammed the mace onto his chest, throwing him off his feet. As the hulking suit of armor landed with a thud, Beacon and Wonder Woman noticed that Shayera had landed directly next to him.

"I'll get her to safety," Wonder Woman announced, "You just finish him."

Beacon nodded and she descended on Faust, holding the mace downward. She slammed the weapon against Faust's head, directly over his face. As Faust screamed in agony as his face shield began to crack. Reassured by this, Beacon gritted her teeth and pushed the mace further into Faust's face. Beams of light began to shoot out and the entire Annihilator suit started to shake violently.

For a moment, everything became still and quiet… Then came the explosion that engulfed everything.

"…Rachel?"

Beacon's eyes fluttered open like a curtain in a stage. There was a mass of colors directly in front of her but she could make nothing out due to her blurred vision. The Halfa steadily allowed her eyelids to close over her eyes again, hoping the gesture would allow her eyes to reset.

"Rachel, are you alright?" This time, Beacon's eyes shot open, and as though the words were a remedy, her eyes regained their focus.

Standing directly over her, covered in a layer of dust, was Wonder Woman. The Amazon did not appear to have sustained any physical trauma, but the concerned look on her face told a differently story. Beacon, wanting to put Wonder Woman at ease, moved her arms and legs in an attempt to get up. However, her entire body refused to budge and instead greeted her with a series of pounding aches. Caught off-guard by the pain, Beacon let out a sharp gasp.

"Take it easy." Wonder Woman insisted quickly as she placed a hand on Beacon's shoulder. "Let me help you." She took hold of Beacon's arm with her other hand and slowly lifted her back into a sitting positon.

Even though the Amazon was being as gentle as she could, the movement still caused the Halfa to wince in pain. After taking a second to compose herself, she turned her gaze to the library, or rather, the remains of one. All around her were plies of splintered wood, and scattered all over the stone floor were pieces of charred books and paper.

Beacon turned back to Wonder Woman, "Shayera," she began worriedly. "How is she? Is she-"

"Slow down." Wonder Woman replied slowly, giving her a reassuring squeeze. "See for yourself."

Wonder Woman gestured towards a direction further down the room. Beacon quickly followed and, with great relief, saw the Thanagarian grinning at her before giving her a small wave. Beacon felt her lips form a big smile as she waved back with a shaking hand.

"And you know what?" Wonder Woman continued. "She said I was all sweaty."

Beacon could not help but laugh. "Guess you told her, huh?"

Wonder Woman let out a soft chuckle. "Guess so," She agreed. She got back to her feet and extended a hand. Beacon accepted it and, with their combined efforts, stood back up as well.

Together Beacon and Wonder Woman made their way back towards Shayera and Hades. The latter of the two, Beacon noticed, was intently flipping through the charred remains of a book, and for a moment, the Halfa actually felt sorry for him.

"Oh, well," Hades sighed, throwing the book away without another glance. "Who has time to read these days?"

He paused for a moment to glance down at his face. Beacon followed his gaze and realized he was staring at what used to be theAnnihilator's head, Slowly, Hades bent over and reached into the remains. When he stood back up, there was something wiggling in his fingers. At first, Beacon thought it was some sort of purple worm, but after narrowing her eyes, she realized it was Faust's head.

The once intimidating sorcerer now looked infinitely more pathetic as he desperately tried to squirm out of Hades' grip, but he could not, no matter how hard he tried.

With a heavy snarl, Hades brought Faust closer to his face before speaking again. "Besides, now I've got a new hobby; tormenting Faust's pathetic soul," He paused to look over at Beacon, Wonder Woman and Shayera. "Any problems with that?"

"Not my department," said Shayera before turning to Wonder Woman. Beacon would have liked to say something as well, but since Shayera took the words out of her mouth, she decided to remain silent.

Hades gave a brief nod and turned to Wonder Woman as well. "And you, my child?"

Wonder Woman looked at him firmly. "Have a party," she replied bluntly, "but don't call me 'my child' again, or you'll get what he got."

There was a pause, and then Hades slowly approached the Amazon. "Your mother never told you, did she?" he asked. When Wonder Woman did not respond, he bent over slightly and raised an oddly gentle grin. "Weren't you ever curious about your father's identity?"

Beacon furrowed her brow deeply as she looked between the Amazon and Hades. Where's he going with this?

"I don't have a father!" Wonder Woman retorted. "My mother sculpted me from clay, and breathed life into me."

Hades' grinned broadened as he gave his reply. "Your mother and I sculpted you together."

WHAT?! Whoa, Whoa! "So then what?!" Beacon blurted out before she could stop herself. "You're saying you're her father? And you expect us to believe that?"

Hades' smile faltered a little. "It does not matter to me whether you believe me or not." He replied, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

He turned back Wonder Woman again, but the Amazon refused to meet his eyes. Nevertheless, he pressed on. "When I met you a few years ago, I realized Hippolyta must have brought you to life after I was condemned to Tartarus… As a reminder of me perhaps." With that final inquiry, Hades turned his back to them, and began walking away.

Beacon glared daggers at Hades' back for a moment before rounding on Wonder Woman. To her dismay, there was a deep frown on the Amazon's face and her seemed to have sunken into misery. "Diana, don't pay attention to a word he says."

"Yeah, he has to be lying," Shayera agreed, and then to take thing further, she unclipped Wonder Woman's lasso and held it before her face. "We can prove it! Use the lasso on him, make him tell the truth!"

There was a long pause, and then Wonder Woman breathed a sigh and looked at her teammates. "… The truth is… it doesn't matter." With a gentle hand, she took her lasso back and reattached it to her hip. "I know what I need to know;" The Amazon continued, "I know who raised me, and I know what I was raised to do."

Although Shayera nodded her understanding, Beacon still felt uneasy about the whole ordeal. For another tense moment she and Wonder Woman stared at each other, then the latter placed her hand on her shoulder and said, "Rachel… it's okay." Her lips curled into a reassuring smile.

In truth, a part of Beacon wanted to keep pressing the issue, but another, more rational part of her realized it was a dead end. In the end, she raised a small smile of her own and nodded as well.

Now that all three of them were on the same page, they began stepping off towards the library's exit, and then, eventually, out of the bowels of Tartarus.

Upon passing the gates, Beacon, Wonder Woman and Shayera found themselves being welcomed by the thunderous screams and cheers of the amazons. Beacon felt nothing but jubilation and quickly turned to beam at Wonder Woman and Shayera, both of which responded in kind.

When cheers finally died down, the three of them waited patiently for Hippolyta to finish making her way towards them. However, the queen of the Amazons had eyes only for her daughter.

There was silence as mother and daughter merely gazed into each other's eyes. From Beacon's standpoint, both of them were trying to think of what to say, but it seemed that being apart for so long had made things rather awkward.

"Thank you for unlocking my armor's powers." Wonder Woman began slowly, her face falling into sadness.

Queen Hippolyta shook her head before replying. "You earned them a long time ago… I was too stubborn to admit it."

For a moment, Beacon noticed Wonder Woman crack a small smile, but then it disappeared nearly as fast as it came. "I-I should go." She gave nothing more and began to move. However, just before she took a step, Hippolyta stopped her.

"Stay and rest for your trip," she said, "At the very least you and your friends can share a meal with me."

Wonder Woman widened her eyes in surprise. "But… I've been banished! The gods…"

"This is your home." Hippolyta insisted firmly. Then she placed a hand on her chest and added. "And I'm your mother. The gods don't like it, they'll have to take it up with me."

"Wow…" Beacon mouthed silently. What a tough mother… literally. As she finished her thought, she saw Hippolyta turn and walk off. A second later, Wonder Woman turned around and Beacon instantly noticed her ear-to-ear grin.

For a moment, the Halfa suspected that she was going to thank her. To show that such an act was not necessary, she raised a grin of her own and nodded. Wonder Woman appeared to have received her message as she returned the nod. Then, she turned to beam at Shayera.

"What about us?" asked the Amazon. "Are we good?"

Shayera paused for a moment before shrugging. "Like oil and vinegar," she replied with a smile. "We go together, but we don't mix."

Wonder Woman merely nodded. "Works for me." With that, Beacon, Wonder Woman, Shayera all took off and began making their way back into Themyscira.

As she flew behind the two older women, Beacon could not help but feel hopeful of their rebuilding friendship.

Hippolyta's palace

Rachel was beyond impressed as she sat down at the long wooden table. Barely two hours had passed since the battle at the gates of Tartarus, and the Amazons were still able to conjure up a meal that was both fresh and delicious. One thing that did make her hesitate though was when she was offered some Amazonian wine.

"I mean, should I drink this?" the Halfa asked rather innocently. "I'm not old enough yet."

Wonder Woman let out a soft chuckle. "Rachel, I understand your point, but here, on Themyscira, that particular law does not apply."

"Yeah, besides," Shayera chimed in, "think of it as the spoils of a hard earned victory." In one swift motion, she snatched her own glass off the table, and downed the rest of her wine in one gulp.

"I'll drink to that!" exclaimed Hippolyta, downing her drink as well

Rachel watched them both with admiration, but a part of her still made her hesitate. Finally, Wonder Woman spoke to her once more. "You're among friends here, and in a controlled environment," reassured the Amazon princess. "Nothing is going to happen."

Both Rachel and Diana stared at each other for a moment. Then the former, having found no flaw in the latter's logic, agreed and drank her wine. Although she was not as ambitious as either Shayera or Hippolyta, she still grimaced when the sharp taste hit her throat.

As the meal went on, Wonder Woman began sharing stories regarding her time in the League. The one that she gave the most details on was the time when Circe used her as a ploy to exact revenge. At first, Hippolyta seemed taken aback, but then a string of jeers flew out her mouth at such a rapid rate, that Rachel was sure that she had thought about them beforehand and was just waiting for the right moment to use them.

After sharing a laugh at the colorful vocabulary, Hippolyta revealed to Wonder Woman about the new additions to the island and insisted that she took the time to come see it. Then with a quick glance at Shayera and Rachel, Hippolyta added that they too were welcome.

While Shayera nodded in thanks, Rachel took a second to think about the offer. From her observations, Themyscira was practically an isolated place filled with beauty and wonder. It seemed just like the place… for her next date!

Excitement instantly spread all over Rachel and her mouth blossomed into a firm smile as she beamed over to Hippolyta. "I'd loved to!" she exclaimed a little too enthusiastically. "But can I ask a question your majesty?"

"What is it?" asked Hippolyta, raising an eyebrow.

"Is it okay if I… bring my girlfriend along?"

For a moment, Rachel and Hippolyta merely locked eyes, and then when Queen's unmoved expression remained unchanged, her cheeks began to feel hot. She could not pinpoint the exact reason that caused her to feel that way. Perhaps it was the wine in her system, or the weight of her request, or maybe it was that fact that everyone at the table was staring at her.

Finally, when her cheeks felt like they were about to boil, Diana let out a soft chuckle before leaning closer to Hippolyta. "Mother, Rachel is a valued friend and teammate. She can be trusted."

Hippolyta eyed between Diana and Rachel for another moment before replying at last. "Very well, you may bring along your significant other."

Rachel's arms and legs twitched as though they were ready to spring into the air by themselves, and the wine she had drunk was not helping her mind to keep them at bay. In the end, she managed to put on her most composed face, and said, "Thank you, Thank you very much."

Hippolyta grinned and nodded. Then she scooted out of her chair and rose to her feet. "Your rooms have already been prepared." She announced. "Feel free to spend all the time you need to rest for your trip. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have other matters to tend to."

Rachel, Diana, and Shayera all nodded at the Queen before watching her walk elegantly out of the room.

"Sure sounds like I missed a lot!" said Kara on the other end of the screen. "I wish I could've been there too."

For the past few minutes, Rachel had been holding a video conference on her phone to tell Kara about her mission earlier. The Halfa was sitting in a large four-poster bed in an even larger circular room that seemed to be made completely out of shining marble.

When she finally finished her story, Rachel saw the longing on her girlfriend's face and wanted nothing more than to be on the other side of the screen to hold and comfort her. However, there was another side of her that did not wish to leave the silk sheets of her bed.

"I know, Kara…" Rachel replied sympathetically. She wanted to say more, but was afraid that she might make Kara feel worse, not better. Therefore, she resorted to changing the subject. "So… How was your time with Clark?"

Kara blinked once before answering. "Oh... Well, I don't really know what to say about it… He, uh, had me… multitask?"

"Really, like what?" Rachel asked.

"I mean…" Kara paused for moment to collect her thoughts, "In the beginning, he had me make a huge sculpture out of ice, but then he started to recite something to me, and then asked me to recite it back word-for-word! I looked at him and thought, 'ARE YOU KIDDING ME'!"

Rachel could not help but laugh. "Well, did you manage to recite it back?"

"Yeah! After about three tries," said Kara, rolling her eyes. "He says these exercises were supposed to improve my concentration and attention to detail. But the more I think about it… Hold one a sec." Rachel raised an eyebrow as Kara looked away, and turned her head from shoulder to shoulder. It was as though she did not want to be overheard.

After another second, Kara turned back to the screen, and leaned in closer. "I think he's using them as an excuse to spend time with me." She whispered. "I think he wants to make up for what he did."

"Well, can you really blame him for it?" Rachel questioned.

"I guess not," Kara replied with a shrugged. "It's just… why did he have to pick today?"

"It's just a coincidence, Kara." Rachel told her patiently. Then she felt a smile creep up on her face. "By the way, I have good news."

Kara raised her eyebrows in curiosity. "What is it?"

"I've found the place for our next date."

There was a pause as Rachel watched Kara process what she had just told her. Then her girlfriend's eyes shot wide open as she let out a long, drawn gasp. "Really? Where is it?" she demanded at blazing speed. Rachel opened her mouth to answer, but Kara beat her to the punch. "You're there right now, aren't you?"

Rachel broadened her smile and nodded. "I asked Diana's mom, and she was cool with us spending a day here."

Kara's excitement, Rachel could tell, was beginning to overwhelm her. She clapped her hands over her mouth in an attempt to hold it all in, but she could do nothing to stop herself from bouncing up and down.

"I take it you're excited?" said Rachel, wincing slightly as she cited the obvious.

"Are you kidding? I'm beyond excited!" Kara exclaimed. She took a moment to collect her breath before continuing. "Oh, you have no idea how much I wanna kiss you right now."

Seeing the desire in Kara's eyes made Rachel's heart race. "I have some idea," she retorted cheerfully, her cheeks now feeling warm, "and I'm really looking forward to it, but right now I should-" She paused to cover up a yawn, "-get some rest."

"Okay, you go ahead and do that, and I'll be here when you get back," said Kara, "sleep tight." Slowly, she raised her fingers to her lips and blew a gentle kiss to the screen.

Rachel beamed as she replied, "I'll see you soon." With that, she tapped her thumb on the screen, and disconnected the call.

She took a moment to breathe a hearty sigh before burrowing deeper into the covers. As her eyes slowly began to droop, her mind was only focused on Kara. She loved how excited she was when she told her about their date. She loved her smile; one that symbolized that everything was going to be okay.

Lastly, she loved Kara's warm, gentle, and overall good heart.

She…loved…her.

In a jolt, Rachel's eyes shot open as the realization coursed through her brain.

I love her!

Again, her heart began to race and the corners of her mouth perked up into a firm smile. She desperately wanted to tell Kara how she felt, and maybe she felt the same way too...

But what if she didn't?

Her smile fell at the uncertainty. Yes, it was possible that Kara would not share Rachel's love for her. However, the Halfa knew that she had to let her know, but how should she tell her?

Initially, Rachel thought about telling her the next time she saw Kara, but that did not sit well with her. Such a move felt too rushed and out-of-nowhere. No, in order to tell Kara something of that magnitude; the mood had to be just right. And that was when it hit her: the date. The date would be the perfect! The place was perfect, and depending on the time, the mood would be perfect as well.

Now it all boils down to playing my cards right. She thought before the drowsiness finally regained its foothold and made her drift off to sleep.

In an unknown void, filled with swirling mist, the two tall figures stood before a glowing circular image. In it was a young girl that had just finally caved into slumber. For a long moment, the two figures merely remained where they were, watching her sleep.

Finally, one of them spoke. "The balance has been restored." His voice was gentle, and echoed softly around his surroundings. The figure wore a long blue cloak, complete with a brimmed hat that effectively covered his eyes.

"So it would seem," remarked the other figure, in a lower and somewhat harsher tone. Like his counterpart, the figure also had a cloak draped over his shoulders. However, unlike his counterpart, his cloak was green and had a hood to cover his head. He also had a bleach white skin tone, with matching, pupil less eyes. "Although, her darkest trials draw ever nearer."

The figure in blue shifted his head slightly towards his acquaintance. "Yes," he agreed, "soon… Rachel Robertson will have to confront the one who took those that were precious to her." He paused to look back at the image. "With that said: I am certain she will make the right choice, for the sake of justice."

"Justice…" The figure in green echoed mockingly. "Do not be so certain, Stranger, for vengeance can become quite… unpredictable."

The Stranger turned back towards him before giving his reply. "That… Spectre. I am very well aware of."

Silence filled the void again as the Stranger and the Spectre stared at one another, and then, as if sharing the exact same thought, both them faded into nothingness.

That's another chapter in the books. Well, what did you think? Please feel free to leave any comments and I will see you all next time.

***Happy Holidays!***