Out of curiosity; would you rather read an Avengers retelling with the Legends of Tomorrow, or with Arrowverse characters? Either works and I can't quite make out which one to write. Please let me know in the comments which version you would most likely read.
Guest: Thanks for the review.
Three days ago, Hypnos started to torture John Constantine. His sons did all the dirty work, but Hypnos took full credit. John could not sleep without experiencing his worst nightmares and Hypnos made sure he could not wake up from them. Every so often, he would whisper that it would end. All John had to do was to say 'yes' to Hecate's offer. He'd gain enough awareness that he was dreaming to resist. Immediately afterward, he was plunged into another nightmare and lost the awareness he'd gained. He was falling and falling and falling, but he never once thought to make a deal with the goddess of magic. He'd rather die than to make any kind of deal. Yet, in the Underworld, he needn't eat or drink and his body was left in some sort of stasis while Hypnos did with it as he pleased.
On the fourth day, John finally woke up (or, as he suspected, Hypnos allowed him to awaken). He did not wake up refreshed – instead, he woke up in a bad mood and the nightmare images on the forefront of his mind. As he woke up, he did not move and did not allow his mind to wander. He only thought of one thing: his frustrations with the Waverider's crew. It wasn't exactly positive, but it was enough to keep him from thinking of everything Hypnos' children had thrown at him. It was enough to keep his mind occupied.
"Wake up, Johnny boy!" Constantine sighed – Hypnos was in his cell again. "I've got a surprise for you." John only did the bare minimum to see what the surprise was. He pushed himself up with his hands and turned his head to the personification of sleep.
John had not had any expectations about the surprise. It could have been a monster. It could have been a decent meal to bribe him with. He wasn't far off with that last assumption.
He tried to keep up appearances when he saw the surprise, tried not to show any kind of reaction that the god of sleep might interpret, all the while wishing he could burn his chains and do something about the situation.
Hypnos was standing close to the exit and next to him sat a man on his knees, whose collar he held tightly to prevent the man from running. But he was not going to run; he may not even be able to walk. He was beaten and bloody – it could have been any poor soul that ended up in the Underworld, but John had recognized him immediately. Hypnos had dragged Chas Chandler to Hell.
"What do you think?" Hypnos asked, using a tone that was too casual for the situation. "Plucked right from the New York streets. You know this man, right?" He pointed at the man at his feet.
John recovered from the initial shock and surprise. Chas was in Hell. A prominent question in his mind, was 'is Chas dead?'. The last time John had seen him, Chas had had several of his lives left. Had they dragged him to Hell straight from the streets of New York, or did they kill him enough times to permanently keep him in Hell even though he did not belong down below.
From Chas' general demeanor, John believed that Chas was, in fact, not dead. Then why did Chas seem so scared? After everything that happened, he had been reckless a couple of times, even dying once to prove a point. He was familiar with death – though, John realized, Chas may not remember what happened. Chas may not know what Hell or Heaven looked like, and he was in an unfamiliar environment with unfamiliar gods. Still, John figured Chas would've been used to this kind of crazy not to be as scared as he now was. Then again, it seemed he'd been tortured and he may have started to fear the god of sleep.
"You've got the wrong guy," John said. "I've never seen that man in my life." It was worth a try; maybe Hypnos would let him go.
Hypnos shook his head. "I don't think so. You were quite shocked."
"John… please…" Chas' voice was hoarse.
John glanced at his friend. Chas was not only scared to do anything but desperate enough to beg. John felt Chas' stare and it compelled him to look at his friend. but he also wanted to watch Hypnos in an attempt to figure out whether that was Chas, how he could protect his friend and – if it wasn't him – to unmask the hidden truths behind the lies.
"At least he knows you," Hypnos said. "You did say 'pick someone else'. Well, I listened and I picked him." He tugged at Chas' collar to make him stand, to show him as some sort of prize. If Hypnos tried to enrage John this way, John did not want to show it.
"Chas Chandler," Hypnos proclaimed. "Taxi driver and best friend. Until you just left him alone. That was rude, John. But I thought it was time for a little reunion."
The god of sleep pushed his prisoner back on his knees. Chas was particularly obedient to the god's non-verbal command. He trembled and his breathing was quicker than usual. He wasn't just scared, he was terrified. Yet somehow, John couldn't shake the feeling something was not right here.
"Not very talkative today, I see," Hypnos asked. "Well, if neither of you wants to talk, I can still make you sing." He turned his head to John. "Unless you're willing to cooperate."
John glanced once more at Chas – I'm sorry, mate – and then glared at Hypnos.
"I'm never going to work for you."
"What a shame," Hypnos said. His demeanor changed instantly. "He'll have to sing." It was some kind of signal. It had to be. Chas screamed in agony after the god of sleep spoke. He pressed his hands against his head and shook it, as if trying to expel whatever was causing his intense pain.
John did not look away. He couldn't look away – there was nothing he could do for Chas at this moment and looking away from the scene would be admitting he knew the man well enough to not want to see him suffer. After half a minute or more, if it had been that long, Constantine decided he's had enough.
"You'll need to come up with something else," John said, shaking his head to once to seem indifferent. "It's not working."
"It's not working?" Hypnos repeated. "Then why do you ask me to stop?"
"John…" There was fear in Chas' voice. If Chas was going to survive, John would have to distract Hypnos to the best of his abilities, tied up in chains that prevent him from doing magic. It wasn't going to be easy, but it was worth a try.
"Why don't you send him back upstairs?" John said. "Take on someone your own size."
A grin appeared on Hypnos' face. "You're already breaking, John." He glanced at Chas, who stopped screaming. The attack on his mind, on his sanity, had ceased for now. "I could send him back, but I'm not going to fight someone my own size, because I don't fight family. This here is so much more fun." He looked at the man who still sat on his knees and then looked at John. An idea had formed in his mind. "What if I killed him and brought him from Heaven to Hell. Make him a more permanent resident. What do you think?"
"John, please," Chas said. He'd raised his voice and sounded alarmed. "I don't want to die."
That was the moment John knew for certain that the man sitting there was not the Chas Chandler he knew. Because John knew that Chas, because of his predicament, did not fear death. He had not died yet and not knowing how many lives there were left, he may have enough left. That was not Chas in front of him.
"Go ahead," John said. "Kill him."
Chas stared at John, an incredulous look on his face. Even Hypnos was taken aback by this remark.
"What?" Hypnos said. John shrugged in response.
"You can kill him if you want. That's not Chas."
The last time John had seen Chas was after he had defeated the Rising Darkness; after John returned from Hell. He remembered now, Chas had paid a high price for staying by John's side. He'd wanted to return home, and John – unbeknownst to him – placed a protection spell on him. Nothing would touch him without John's knowledge. If this had been Chas, John would have known someone had hurt him. But that was not Chas, and if he – whoever he was – hadn't expressed his fear of death, John would still believe that thing in front of him was one of his friends.
Hypnos was dumbfounded. The expression flashed across his face for just a second, easily detected even with his sunglasses on.
"It is, though," the god of sleep said, trying to deceive him one last time, but a knowing grin appeared on John's face.
"It's not," John said. "Chas Chandler would never beg for his life because he is not afraid of death." Especially because he'd died so often, it probably would be just another time it's happened. And if he lived to old age, he would probably greet death like an old friend.
Constantine's suspicions were confirmed when a woman walked into the cave. It was not Hecate. John guessed she was about Hypnos' age, having the same pale skin and short blonde hair. she also wore a suit, which was just a lighter shade of grey than Hypnos' suit. She wore no sunglasses – her eyes pale blue pierced right into John's soul. Despite her sharp and hostile appearance and despite knowing he shouldn't trust any Greek god, John felt inclined to believe what she had to say.
"We should've done this my way," she said in a sweet voice that did not match her appearance. Hypnos turned his head to her and scowled.
"Who the bloody hell are you?" John asked. She looked at him and smiled. Somehow, she had a lovely smile, even if her eyes glared daggers at him.
"Apate," she answered. "His sister."
"It must be a pain to grow up with such a big ego." John glanced at Hypnos. The small grin on Apate's face revealed she appreciated his comment.
"I can handle it," she said. "I've had to grow up with five such egos. His is the biggest, though." She did not sound bitter or jealous – she seemed proud to have grown up with among egotistical siblings.
She approached him and remained five feet away from him. Hypnos did not do the same. He left, taking the person who had to act like Chas with him. he gave his sister all the room she needed.
"I can't stay for long," she told him. "But don't worry, I'll be back. When I return, I'm going to find out what makes you tick. I will strike when you are weak or when you least expect it. I will play hard, but you can count on one thing: I will always be honest with you."
"Really?" John shook his head. "Why do I feel like you're lying?"
"Because you're in Hell," Apate responded without hesitation. "It tends to have that effect. Goodnight."
The goddess walked out of the room without saying another word. John was alone again.
Constantine lay on the ground and closed his eyes. The images from his sleep came flooding right back in without the distraction Hypnos and Apate provided. An image of Chas getting hurt was added to the mix and made it extra hard to focus on coming up with a plan to escape. So instead, he listed all the things he needed to do. He needed to break the chains, without magic. He needed to find his way. He needed to find the exit to the land of the living. He needed to do all of this without being noticed. It was going to be hard.
He found himself wishing the Legends knew he was in trouble. They would ruin the element of surprise and leave a mess in their wake, but at least they wouldn't give up until they brought him back.
With all that in mind, John tried to sleep. He hoped it would not bring back the nightmares.