The smell of smoke and ash filled his nose as fierce purple eyes bore into his.
He felt unsure and hesitant as he tried to find the right words to say.
"Sam I-"
"I wish I never met you…"
A familiar sharp, stabbing feeling struck his core as his aura flickered.
"Sam-"
She turned away from him as she stared at the destroyed mansion. "I don't want to hear it…"
"Sam, please, I understand that you're hurt-"
"How could you possibly understand?!"
A distant memory of flames and the smell of ectoplasm, burnt flesh, and malicious red eyes filled his mind.
He quickly brushed it off and focused on his grieving friend.
"Sam I tried everything I could but she-"
"Get out…"
"Sam please-"
"I said get out!"
He hesitated for a second, but that was the only second she needed as she aimed her arm at him and her other hand hovered over her silver metal bracelet.
"Go away, Phantom…"
His green eyes widened as he took a step back and stared in fearful shock at his friend.
"Sam, what are you-"
A green ray shot out of the bracelet and hit his right shoulder.
He let out a cry of shocked pain and quickly covered the now oozing green wound.
"Next time, I won't miss…"
The Halfa looked at her with a pained and sorrowful expression as he took a step back and kicked off the ground, quickly flying away from the burnt Manson mansion.
Festival of Interdimensional Peace
-:-
The second day of the Interdimensional Peace had begun. The Team's morning routine went by quickly, the same as the day before, though the only change was Phantom had chosen to wear his regular suit and Danielle had decided to accompany them.
Upon their arrival, the Team and the two other ghosts started to discuss their plans for the day.
Frostbite turned towards the team with a boisterous smile. "Will you be joining us for a game of Blizzard, young Justice League?"
Danielle chuckled and smirked at the yeti. "I advised them that they should probably watch it first, rather than going in blind."
The yeti shared her chuckle. "Ah yes, a good decision indeed! Well, the games do not begin for another hour and a half, I hope to see you all in the crowd then."
Frostbite said his brief farewells and made his way toward the arena. It was then Dora's turn as she curtsied and told them she would be walking around for a while before she too made her leave.
'Today is definitely going to be interesting…'
"Aren't you going with him? To prepare for the games?"
Phantom was snapped out of his thoughts as he turned towards his curious teammates.
The Halfa shook his head. "Nah, all that's needed now is to just show up. So I thought I could hang around with you guys for a bit."
Aqualad smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. "Of course, we would be relieved if you did. What do you recommend we should do? You are considered the experienced one here."
"Well, usually I like to just go around and see what people are up to-" His green eyes widened as he remembered something. " -Speaking of which. Hey Aqualad? Would you like to meet some of the Atlanteans that come here?"
Phantom watched as Aqualad's expression turned to something akin to concern and uncertainty.
"Are you sure that's alright for me to do?"
"Wouldn't it mess up timeline stuff or something?" Kid interjected.
The Halfa shrugged, causing the entire Team to metaphorically jaw drop. "They don't come often, and Clockwork would've said not to by now if it was."
He smiled excitedly as he pulled Aqualad in tow towards the East Bazaar area.
"You guys go ahead, Superboy, and I will make sure Danny doesn't rip Aqualad's arm off," M'gann chuckled as she and Superboy took off after them.
Nightwing turned towards the rest of his team and smiled. "I guess that leaves us huh? Come on, let's go look around and see if there's anything new today."
The younger members took the lead as they walked West toward the Main Stage and performance areas.
East Bazaar Playground, Festival of Peace
-:-
"Hey, it's Sir Phantom!"
"Sir Phantom? Sir Phantom!"
Superboy turned to see young Atlanteans running towards them with excitement. Some had more humanoid features while others looked like literal sea creatures out of water.
"Sir Phantom! Sir Phantom!"
The children laughed and giggled as they ran up to their ghostly teammate, jumping up and down in joy and tugging on his jumpsuit.
"Look at you guys! How have you been!?" Their ghostly teammate laughed.
"Good!" They all synced before laughing and giggling.
Even Superboy couldn't help but smile at the sight of all the excited kids.
"Can you show us the trick?"
"Yeah! The trick! The trick!"
"Show us the trick, Phantom!"
Gasps from the other kids made the laughter and movement stop instantaneously.
Superboy, Miss M, and Aqualad all shared a worried glance, all concerned by how quick the shift in the atmosphere was.
"I'm so sorry Lord Phantom! P-please, forgive me!" The octopus-like Atlantean child bowed apologetically, trembling slightly as though trying to hold back fearful tears.
That comment made eyebrows raise, and Superboy barely caught Phantom's wince.
Their teammate quickly kneeled down and put a gentle hand on the child's shoulder. "Hey, hey… it's alright. There's no need to be afraid, okay? I don't mind if you call me Phantom. But, if your guardian hears you say that, there's no guarantee I can save you from their wrath, okay?"
"D-do you mind… um… would you mind still doing the trick then, P-Sir Phantom?" The child sniffled.
Superboy watched as the ghostly teen looked over towards a woman, concealed beneath a brown niqāb. She tilted her head down in a polite way, assuming it was her signaling an okay to the Halfa.
"Alright, but no bragging to the other kids alright?" Phantom winked.
"Yay!" All the children synced as they began laughing and giggling excitedly again.
The Halfa chuckled and Superboy, Aqualad, and Miss M all watched as the kids all backed up a few steps.
Phantom put his hand out, palm up, and the kids all watched with complete focus as his hands and eyes started glowing blue. Ice and snow began to swirl together in the air above his hand before it condensed into a small slightly glowing snowball.
He then threw it into the air and the ball seemed to hit an invisible force a few feet above their heads, exploding into snow.
The kids cheered as the snow fell and started to run around.
To the small group's surprise, it kept snowing, and the snow even managed to stick to the ground beneath them and began building up.
Phantom walked back over to them with a smile and a nervous chuckle. "That should keep them busy for a while."
"But won't the snow melt?" Miss M asked curiously.
The half-ghost shook his head. "Not for a while. Their guardian and I agreed to have it for at least thirty minutes. Also, it helps to keep them hydrated and to not overheat."
"Agreed? But you didn't speak to anyone," Miss M recalled.
Phantom blinked at the heroine in confusion before smiling and tapping his head.
"Oh! She's a telepath?" She asked with a hint of excitement.
The ghostly teen chuckled and nodded.
"Oh wow! That's fascinating!" she beamed.
"Yes, however, I often find myself being unable to split my attention for too long."
The group, except Phantom, turned towards the new speaker, the person in the niqāb.
The being's eyes were bright and were squinted in a way that led Superboy to believe she was smiling. "Hello, I don't believe we've met before."
"Oh right. These people are some of the members of the Justice League. This is Miss Martian, Superboy, and Aqualad."
The woman smiled at the three. "Call me 'Caretaker'. I am these young Atlanteans' guardian until they move on, or their parents join them."
"Move on?" Superboy raised an eyebrow.
A small silence fell over them as they looked back over at the playing children.
Miss M's eyes turned sorrowful. "You mean they're…"
Now looking at it, the clone could see a faint glow around each of the kids as they shouted excitedly as they threw snowballs at each other.
Phantom rubbed the back of his neck apologetically. "Sorry Aqualad, I had completely forgotten. If you're not comfortable-"
"-no, please." Their Atlantean teammate interjected with an appreciative smile. "It was thoughtful of you, thank you."
The Halfa offered a relieved smile back. "No problem."
"Hey, mister!"
The heroes looked over to see the kids building a makeshift snowman or snow-shark man?
"Hey! You wanna play with us?!"
Aqualad pointed to himself questioningly.
"Yeah, you! Come play with us!" Another child urged excitedly.
Aqualad looked at Phantom and Caretaker.
The ghostly hero nodded and crossed his arms. "Take some time to just cool off and have a little fun. I know playing with kids isn't the most ideal but, these guys don't get a lot of visitors if you know what I mean. And don't worry about getting lost, Caretaker plans on taking the kids to see the Blizzard Games later."
Aqualad nodded before turning and smiling at the children. "Alright...as you wish."
The children cheered as a couple of them ran over and pulled their Atlantean friend towards the snow shark-man.
"Come on you guys," Phantom chuckled, grabbing Miss M and Superboy's attention. "Let's see what everyone else is up to."
.….….….….….….….….….….….….….….…..
"Huh, Danny was right, there does seem like a lot more people today…" Kid commented offhandedly.
"Yeah, I noticed it too, it's kinda overwhelming," Beast Boy added with a nervous flicker of his tail.
The crowd suddenly got louder catching the Team's attention and deciding to listen in.
"Hey! Look over there!"
"One of the other rulers just arrived!"
"Come on, let's go!"
Some Team members gave each other weary glances, while others also started making their way to the forming crowd to see what all the fuss was about.
A long black-haired man with a dark goatee, wearing silver and black armor with two spartan-like skeleton guards walking behind him was slowly making their way through the crowd.
"It's Lord Hades!"
"Lord hades is here!"
"Wait, that's who that guy is?" Beast Boy whispered to the Team.
"Isn't he Wonder Woman's enemy?" Kid Flash whispered.
"Oh yeah! I totally forgot!"
"Remember team, zero fighting tolerance…" Nightwing reminded everyone sternly.
The team nodded with serious faces as they watched hades come closer and closer, the crowd splitting in half in order for the ruler to get through.
Hades must've caught one of them staring, as he suddenly smirked and changed his direction toward them.
'Miss M, can you hear me?' Nightwing attempted to call out mentally.
After a few seconds, Miss M's voice was heard via Mindlink. 'Loud and clear. Is something wrong?'
'Possible trouble. Can you link us up?'
'Of course.'
'Everyone here?'
'Yeah.'
'Yep.'
'This is here to make sure no one steps out of line. No matter what he says, do not start a fight.' Nightwing warned.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the Justice League's apprentices. I'll admit I'm surprised you're attending, given your track record and all." Hades smirked as he stopped right in front of their small group.
The crowd started talking in hushed whispers as they watched the interaction.
Nightwing put on his best smile. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid we haven't met before."
Hades smiled knowingly. "The name is Hades. Lord Hades of the Underworld and ruler over the Dead, at least, in my portion of the Infinite Realms. And you are?"
"Nice to meet you, Lord Hades. I am Nightwing, and this is my team of trusted young heroes. We were invited here by Clockwork, Ghost Master of Time."
The crowd broke into louder hushed whispers, while Hades's eyebrow raised curiously.
"You don't say? Master of Time? That's quite the honor. And how did a group of teenagers, such as yourselves, come to know such a being?" he asked with a hint of suspicion.
"Lord Hades! And here I was thinking you weren't going to show!"
The crowd split and turned their attention to Frostbite, Danny, Miss Martian, and Superboy walking toward them.
The team felt uneasy at the sight of the uncharacteristically expressionless and stoic Far Frozen yeti.
Hades became expressionless for but a moment before offering a polite smile and bow of the head. "Lord Frostbite, a pleasure, as always. May the Unworld never claim you."
Frostbite didn't even bat an eye. "And may the Ancients watch over you and grant you passage to Elsewhere… It has been a long time."
Hades' eyes had a strange glint to them as he looked towards Phantom.
"Greetings, Sir Daniel Phantom. I see that you're accompanying the Far Frozen this year?"
'What was that look for?'
'Shhh! I can't hear with your thoughts, Baywatch!' Artemis scolded.
The team watched as Phantom offered a small bow of the head, but remained expressionless as he looked back at the supposed 'god'. "Greetings to you, Lord Hades, and you are correct. I am accompanying the Far Frozen and the Kingdom of Aragon this year. The Ancients have blessed us with good spirits and good company this year."
Hades smirked and let out a small disbelieved huff. "Am I correct to assume that the Justice League is here thanks to your influence?"
Phantom's eyes became stern for but a second before returning to expressionlessness. "The decision was made by the Master of Time and was his alone. The Festival of Interdimensional Peace is open to all who bear no ill will." Their friend stated pointedly.
There was a small tense silence before Frostbite cleared his throat.
"Will you be watching this year's Blizzard Games, Lord Hades?"
Hades cleared his throat as he fixed his shoulder armor briefly. "As a matter of fact, I am. I overheard some gossip saying that this year there was going to be good competition. Especially since our young knight here will be attending."
"Should we expect to see you in the stands then?"
"That is correct. Good luck, Lord Frostbite." He gave a head tilt towards Frostbite before he turned and gave almost a half-body bow towards Phantom with a sly smile. "And to you as well, Sir Daniel Phantom."
Hades and his two bodyguards walked past Frostbite and Phantom, neither party exchanging glances.
After the god was out of sight, their whole group seemed to release a collective breath.
'Ugh! That guy gave me the creeps!' Artemis shuddered.
'Tell me about it…' Zatanna agreed as she tried to rub the goosebumps off her arms.
'At least he defended us being here,' Miss M offered encouragingly.
'Yeah, but he used Clockwork as an excuse, not the fact that we were coming along with him,' Artemis pointed out.
'Remember, he has to play politics while he's here. Technically it was Clockwork that invited us here, not Phantom.' Nightwing reminded the Team.
'But how does that explain why he couldn't say we came with him?'
'It could be because he's part human that Hades said that. And since we're human and considered from a Living Realm, it could cause people to automatically pin our attendance on him.'
'Oh yeah…'
'Yeah, I feel like that would check out.'
"You guys alright?"
They turned to see Phantom and the others walking over to join them.
Nightwing sent a look toward Miss Martian.
'I thought you just wanted a conversation between your group. Aqualad, Superboy, and Danny aren't linked.'
The acting leader nodded toward their ghostly friend. "Yeah, we're good. Hades just took us by surprise is all."
The Halfa raised an eyebrow. "Because of the Greek mythology thing?"
"No. One of Wonder Woman's enemies."
He blinked before facepalming. "Oh crap, I'm sorry you guys, I had no idea!"
"It's fine, Phantom. But I do have to ask, how do you know him?"
The half-ghost gestured to those around them and they immediately understood.
"How'd that go?"
"He was confused why I was wearing a toga until Pandora found us and she explained that I was attending the festival with her."
"Huh, noted…"
"Well if that's everything, the Great One and I should get ready for the Blizzard games."
"Oh yeah! We gotta go find some good seats!" Beast Boy urged excitedly.
Phantom smiled at the younger shapeshifter. "Find Ember and Skulker. They probably already found some good ones."
"Cool! Thanks, Danny!"
The Team was buzzing with newfound energy as they made their way toward the North Arena.
North Arena, Festival of Peace
-:-
The place was bustling with excitement.
Ghosts, creatures, and beings of all shapes, colors, and sizes filled the coliseum from top to bottom.
A beautiful giant blue crystal made of snow and ice floated above the center of the gray dirt floors.
"Nervous, Great One?"
Phantom chuckled as he turned to see Frostbite and his fellow team of Far Frozen warriors.
"There's just a little more people than I expected," he admitted with a nervous rub of his neck.
"Haha! But of course! Especially after last year's games, many have heard about the heated and glorious battle after your attendance!"
"I'm pretty sure falling on my face doesn't count as glorious," the ghostly teen deadpanned.
The yeti smiled at the young ghost before they turned their sights to the other side of the arena entrance.
Smiling and speaking amongst each other were their opponents, the Kari Clan, a week's journey eastward of the FarFrozen clan.
Their people looked similar to gorillas, albeit much larger than the average gorilla. One of their smaller females could easily be at eye level with Frostbite, and Frostbite towers over the young Halfa. Their faces were a little bit different than a gorillas, their snouts were shorter or flat, small tusk-like teeth peeked out from their lower lip and they had large rounded eyes. Their fur was long and raven black, the females had a purple shine to their fur (an attribute that Phantom couldn't help but smile at), and the males had white fur around their faces, closely resembling war paint. Their fur-covered all of their body, making clothing next to impossible to wear, though it didn't seem to bother them.
Frostbite had described the Kari as kind and peaceful people, much like the FarFrozen, but only after hundreds of years of fighting in numerous wars, by force, for the old ghost king, Pariah Dark.
Phantom was snapped out of his thoughts as the metal gates groaned and creaked as they were raised up.
The crowd began to roar as the two teams made their way to the center.
"Lord Frostbite! It seems you have barely aged a day since our last Blizzard Games!" A Kari member with a golden diadem shouted as they got closer to the center.
"Lady Helenia, you are as radiant as winter's morning as always!" Frostbite replied with a respectful bow of his head.
Once closer, Lady Helenia turned towards the half-ghost with a relieved and content smile. "Sir Phantom, Great One, and ward of the Master of Time, it is so good to see you safe and well."
He smiled at the chief as he gave a slight bow of the head. "It's good to see you too, Lady Helenia. I'm excited for this year's games."
"As are we, Sir Phantom. I hope last year's- mishap- has taught you to look before you step?"
The ghostly teen blushed a bright green making both Lady Helenia and Frostbite laugh.
She grabbed Danny's hand gently, Frostbite offering his in response to hers. The Kari chief then turned towards the crowd and raised both of their arms up high (to which Danny had to float a bit to make sure he wasn't dangling by one arm).
The crowd stood up to applaud and cheer.
"Today!" Her voice rang through the stadium as though she had a microphone. "Today marks the beginning of this year's Blizzard Games!"
The crowd's excitement grew exponentially in volume.
"Today, we play not of rivalry, not of spite, and not of ill-will. Today, we play to celebrate our Festival of Interdimensional Peace!"
The crowd roared with excitement and began to chant 'Peace!' throughout the whole coliseum.
Lady Helenia lowered Phantom and Frostbite's arms and gave a slight bow to both of them, to which the rest of her team followed suit.
Frostbite smiled before putting an arm over his chest, which Phantom and the rest of their team mimicked, and together they all bowed their heads.
An announcer then began to explain the rules of the game as the two teams walked to opposite ends of the arena.
"Welcome to the Blizzard games! Newcomers, here are the rules! Each team has 5 minutes to construct a base for their side of the arena which holds two scrolls, and two urns. The Kari Clan has to retrieve the gold items, while the FarFrozen Clan is to retrieve the silver. Two people are allowed to guard their base for each team, while the other members go out and try to retrieve the other team's items without getting hit! The items have to be returned by one member each time, not one member may carry all the weight. The first team with all eight points, or with the last man standing, wins! Teams, you are now allowed your two minutes to converse, and the timer starts… NOW!"
Nightwing sat in between Miss Martian and Kid Flash, not exactly the best decision on his part.
Kid Flash was constantly chatting with Artemis as well as making comments about how 'things didn't make sense to him. While Miss Martian, while glad to see her ecstatic, was intrigued and wanted to know about everything going on and kept asking Ember questions about almost every person, place, or thing, around them.
He sighed to himself again with crossed arms as he looked over the filled arena. Something still seemed off.
Sure, Danny had told them there were going to be more people, but specifically at the Blizzard Games? When there's other arenas, performances, and shops to explore and visit?
What is so important about these games that would cause such a turnout? Is it because of who's playing against who, much like in sports? Or is it because of who's in the crowd?
Speaking of which-
'Watch out. Hades. 9 o'clock.'
Nightwing looked over to where Superboy had warned the Team over the Mindlink and sure enough, Hades and a few other rulers were being seated at the VIP Balcony.
'Hey, why don't we get special seats? We were invited by the Master of Time himself.'
'I don't think that's how that works Kid.'
Nightwing was taking mental notes of everyone that was on the balcony when the announcer called time for the teams.
"The two minutes are up! Kari Clan, Far Frozen Clan, please take your places!"
The crowd started to quiet as the teams moved to their respectful spots.
"Kari Clan?"
The team roared, throwing up their fists in unison, earning a roar from the crowd.
"Far Frozen Clan?"
The team of yetis roared and hollered, some chanting a phrase, the crowd again roaring in excitement alongside them.
"Ready?! And- START!"
Nightwing watched with newfound intrigue as the two teams began using ice powers to create small structures and bases around their four items. Each side shouted orders to each other and helped the ones that were falling short or having trouble.
The crowd began to chant either team's names as they worked, some of the Team members joining in on the Far Frozen fans.
The Kari Clan was building something similar to a castle. A tall gate with a single entrance, a sturdy ice door, tall walls to match, and another wall around the four items with each on a pedestal.
Meanwhile, the FarFrozen Clan was building-
"Is that an igloo?!" Beast Boy exclaimed dumbfounded.
Nightwing chuckled as BB had managed, yet again, to speak what everyone was thinking.
"How is that supposed to protect anything?" the young shapeshifter gaped.
He had to admit that he was a bit skeptical as well, sure there was only one way in, but they did make it easy for the Kari to fit inside it, and there were no outer fence walls to protect it, just whoever was going to be selected as the guards.
'Guess we'll just have to find out.'
After about a minute, both sides had finished building their bases right as time was called.
"Let the Blizzard Games… BEGIN!"
A loud boom shook the arena as the crystal from above exploded into sparkling snow and ice. The Team watched in fascinated awe as the snow immediately stuck to the ground and made the field start to look like a winter wonderland.
Roars of cheer and applause filled the arena again as the two sides charged for each other.
Phantom created a large ball of snow and ice and threw it into the Karis charging at him. They staggered backward in shock, the Halfa taking the opportunity to swing and kick one of the bo staffs out of one of their hands. He quickly snatched it out of its freefall, ducked, and slid between the two Kari, knocking them off their feet with the staff as he went.
A nearby Far Frozen yeti cheered him on as a Kari tackled them to the ground.
Phantom winced but continued to make his way to their opponent's base.
"Great One, catch!"
He turned and proceeded to catch another manifested weapon, this time an escrima stick, that was tossed to him by Frostbite.
"Come now, together!" The yeti exclaimed excitedly as they ran towards the Kari Clan's base.
"Wait for it!"
They could see the guards readying themselves, a smirk forming on Phantom's lips as he realized Frostbite's plan.
"Wait!"
The Kari started to form snow and ice crystals around themselves.
"Wait!"
One pulled their arm back ready to throw, while the other one got ready to tackle.
"NOW!"
Frostbite slid to a stop in front of Phantom and held his hands out. The teen jumped into his hands and the yeti pole vaulted him over the top of the structure.
Phantom threw the eskrima towards one stand, knocking the remaining scroll off, and landed next to one of the urns.
He quickly grabbed the urn before rolling out of the way of another trap, before grabbing a scroll and placing it inside the urn.
The halfa then formed a large spear and threw it at the closed ice door. It shattered and he made a run for it, using an ice shield as cover.
Frostbite was waiting outside holding his ground. Phantom shouted for Frostbite to catch as he tossed him the scroll from inside the urn and shot a snowball at the guard.
"Nicely done, Great One!"
"Same to you!"
The other Far Frozen covered them both as they made a dash back to their own base.
Everything was going well- until the Halfa tripped over a spearhead and fell face-first into the snow.
The crowd broke into both cheers and laughter as he quickly rolled out of the way of an incoming ice ball the size of a car.
"Oh come on! Again?!" He exclaimed with a bright green blush.
Phantom quickly got off the ground as another Kari went to attack him. A gasp of awe came from the crowd as he twisted around the dulled spear and slid underneath the Kari before using his ice powers to create a snow rhino that charged the attacker, scattering into powered snow upon impact.
There were several awed or fascinated gasps, while the rest of the crowd roared even louder at the reveal of his animal ice construct abilities.
Distracted, Phantom quickly took the opportunity to sprint the rest of the way to the igloo.
Once they were safe inside their own base, more of the crowd applauded and cheered in an uproar.
"What a game, Great One! You're really outdoing yourself!"
"Nah, we owe it to you honestly. You're a great teacher, old friend. Now, who isn't out?"
Frostbite beamed. "We still have one of our guards and three soldiers, not counting the two of us."
"Alright, and the opposing team?"
"Four soldiers and no guards, Great One," The guard outside reported.
"Okay good. Frostbite, let's get out there and help out. We're going to create a distraction and make it seem like we're trying to be the last ones standing, but we'll actually have one of the others sneak around and get the last urn."
"Sounds good to me!" he exclaimed with a determined grin.
Superboy watched as Danielle launched out of her seat with yips and hollers as she cheered on Danny and the Far Frozen.
"GO RIGHT! GO RIGHT! THAT'S YOUR LEFT! GO RIGHT! THERE YOU GO!"
Well maybe cheering wasn't the right word…
Superboy smiled as he remembered the fond memory of first meeting Danielle.
It had been a long day at the cave when Danny's portal activated and out came Danielle. Literally rolling up to the scene of some of the younger members sparring. He happened to have just been walking into the room when it happened.
She had begun to fight the younger members in a panic, though to be fair, Beast Boy did antagonize and start the fight.
Luckily, Superboy had gotten there when he did, so he was able to stop the fight pretty early on before it became too out of control. Shortly after calming them down, Danny was called. The reunion was admittedly bitter for him to watch at the time. Danny and Danielle had explained that she was a clone made by Vlad and so on. After some convincing to Batman, she was allowed to come and go as she pleased, so long as it was only her and she didn't leave the cave in her ghost form.
Since then, Superboy and Dani talked on and off, usually casually, like distant cousins, their bond mainly coming from their pasts as clones and their biological so-called parents being 'millionaire fruitloops' as she liked to call them.
But to see and witness Danielle in her own environment, was definitely-
"COME ON THROW IT ALREADY!"
-entertaining.
'Hey guys, heads up, Hades looks a little too intrigued by something…'
Superboy turned his attention towards the VIP stand, and sure enough, Hades was eyeing something on the field a little too intensely.
Before he could say anything, an excited uproar brought his attention back to the game, and saw Lady Helenia making a dash with one of the FarFrozen relics.
Right before Lady Helenia was about to cross the threshold, a spectator suddenly jumped over the arena walls and flew right towards Lady Helenia with what looked like a bronze knife.
"NO!"
The Team wouldn't be able to make it on time, even with Kid's super speed. The assassin was too close, he-
But before the knife could graze her fur, a shockwave of green energy blew the assassin to the ground, and a green dome surrounded Lady Helenia.
Superboy watched in frozen disbelief as a dense blizzard fog then filled the arena field, almost like a wave. And akin to an eye in a storm, the only thing in sight was the assassin, surrounded and blocked off by the dense fog.
"What the?!"
The hero felt the arena rumble as though it were alive and was letting out a low growl.
Suddenly, an enormous snake made of ectoplasm and ice erupted from the fog. Its fangs, the size of cars, barred and dripping with raw green ectoplasm. Its eyes were glowing a venomous pupilless green and blue as it began to coil itself around the assassin.
It wasn't until this moment, that the assassin had begun to panic. "No, no please!"
The snake said nothing as its large scales tightened around its victim, ice slowly crawling over him until everything but his head was frozen solid.
The crowd didn't dare move, nor speak, as they watched in fascinated horror.
A gray and black portal swirled into existence above the middle of the fog-hidden field causing several terrified screams to erupt from the crowd.
"No, NO! PLEASE HAVE MERCY!"
The snake's jaws sent shivers down the audience's spines as it grabbed its victim in its fangs and threw its head and the assassin through the gray portal. After reclaiming its head, mouth now empty, the portal closed, leaving the audience in shocked and fearful silence.
The snake looked over the arena once before making a roaring pose, making the whole coliseum rumble, before it dove under the fog. And as the dense fog dissipated, the snake was nowhere to be seen. Some of the Kari and Far Frozen clan went over to check on Lady Helenia as the green shield disappeared, she all but waved them off, showing that she was unharmed.
Superboy's attention was brought back to Frostbite as he cleared his throat.
"Let this serve as a reminder to all! Should any being attempt to purposely maim or otherwise attempt to kill another attendee, the Heir will not hesitate to punish them and cast them into the Unworld! This game has been dismissed! All rulers are to report to the Main Tent with haste! All other attendees, please leave the coliseum in an orderly fashion!"
The crowd erupted into fearful chatter as the teams dispersed.
Superboy watched closely as Frostbite put a hand on Phantom's shoulder as he passed him, watching as his ghostly friend clenched his fists as he looked towards the ground before composing himself and following the yeti.
'Come on guys, let's go check on Phantom and Frostbite,' Nightwing nudged as he stood up and started following the crowd to the exit.
'Hey wait, look at Hades.'
The Team turned and saw Hades with a devilish smirk as he stared at the center of the arena.
'Cause that's not suspicious at all,' Kid commented with a serious tone.
Nightwing nodded his head. 'Agreed, we'll bring it up to Danny. Come on, let's get a move on.'
"I'm out of here! This place is freezing!"
The man watched as the teenage Lord of Chaos started walking towards the arena exit. He turned back towards the arena with a knowing smirk.
"It seems things are going to be just as interesting as I thought…"
