The Nelson's garden was beautiful, Zatanna noted, as she quietly shut one of the tower's many doors behind her. She shuddered for a moment in the cool, crisp morning air, taking a good, long, look around her.

The landscape showed no signs of a battle from the day before. The grass all around her was a bright, perky, and luscious green. The light, airy gray mist that gently rolled along the ground did nothing but help make the green all around her seem evermore luscious, as though she was in a modern day Babylonian garden.

She smiled for a moment as she breathed in sweet, fragrant air, feeling calmer than she had since she'd come to Salem. Zatanna silently rounded a corner, coming across a large, sprawling, fragrant garden at the back of the tower. She smiled as she walked towards the exotic flora, cherishing the quiet peace of the day.

Zatanna sat down on a bench overlooking a wilder part of the valley below her, realizing that the Nelson's residence sat upon a hill that was on the outskirts of Salem. It was the perfect spot for practicing magick. It was also the perfect spot for being attacked by demons without the general public really being none the wiser. As she was sure they were about the huge battle that had happened when she, Bart and the others had set foot in Salem.

Or maybe Dr. Fate regularly did mind wipes. Maybe he had enough power to regularly erase the entire town's memories whenever something supernaturalistic occurred. And if he did that…then what she did the night before was okay, right?

Right?

"You are conflicted," a voice said suddenly behind her. Zatanna jumped up and whirled around to see Inza Nelson standing behind her, holding a pot full of flowers that Zatanna had never seen before.

"Conflicted? No…it's just one of those mornings."

Inza gave Zatanna one of her luminescent, warm smiles. "Zatanna, I have known your father for years now. Kent and I are the last people you should be lying to. What is it that has you looking so worried?" she asked as she sat herself down on the bench. She patted the empty spot next to her, indicating to Zatanna that she should sit down as well. Zatanna complied, giving Inza a smile of her own.

"It's nothing much, really," Zatanna said, lying. "I just…I had no clue how difficult things would become with Lana and trying to figure out what this huge mystery is. I mean…I came to Smallville to find my father. I didn't expect to make friends, to actually find any people that I cared about, and to stumble upon this huge, possibly apocalyptical deal."

"Perhaps this is a journey you must undertake, Zatanna. To help find your father. Maybe this will give you the magickal skills that you will need. Have you considered that?"

"I have, Inza…it's just that…well, went I went to see Uncle Jim, he told not to continue on this quest. He swore that he didn't know what was going on…but he had a bad feeling about it. After last night's incident, I'm a little worried too."

"Don't be. Don't be in the least. From what you've told us, Zatanna, you have come a long way. Why be worried now?"

Zatanna shook her head. "I don't know." Wow, she thought to herself, she was really getting into the lie. Or was it that she was speaking out some of the unconscious thoughts in her mind?

Great. More confusion. Granted, she had been weary of coming to Fate's tower initially, but all of that faded once she'd gotten into battle mode.

Zatanna suppressed her train of thought as she gave Inza another smile. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I shouldn't worry. Everything happens for a reason, right?"

"Exactly. Anyhow, Kent has returned…and I'm sure that there are things that you still wish do discuss with him pertaining your friend."

"I do. There's still a lot that needs to be talked over before we can leave."

"We have the whole day ahead of us, if you wish to relax some more."

"No," Zatanna stood up. "We can't impose on you any further, no matter how much you insist that we aren't. In any case, the entire reason that we came here was because we needed to sort these things out."

Inza watched Zatanna go, admiring the younger woman's inner strength, before following her into the tower.

Isobel Theroux finally pushed herself off of the bed, having ascertained her surroundings, and having figured out what had happened in the past couple of days. Her descendent was still playing the part of an idiot child, attempting to solve some great mystery about her destiny.

Hadn't she understood yet? Lana Lang's only great destiny was to keep this shell alive until such a point where Isobel herself could come back and inhabit it, which she had. Beyond that, her descendant had no great destiny with which to speak of.

Isobel lightly stepped over to the mirror on the wall across from her and stood there for a moment, admiring the body she inhabited. The body was a few years younger than hers had been when she'd been burnt at the stake, but besides that minor detail, the face – indeed the entire figure – reflected back at her was identical to the physical figure she had inhabited so long ago.

She used a spell and in a moment was freshly showered and dressed. Her clothes were those more befitting a countess and a sorceress than the clothes that her peasant-like descendant was prone to wear. She smiled at her reflection as she took in her trendy yet sophisticated outfit, and then stepped out of the bedroom.

As Isobel silently walked down the hallway, she silently came up with the first few dregs of a plan to get her crystals and to stay undetected from Lana Lang's friends. The last time she had been overtly obvious with her abilities, an insolent Homo magus had nearly sent her soul back to the ether.

For one thing, Isobel would have to act the full part of Lana so that she could operate without being discovered. It wouldn't be easy, but she had enough of Lana's memories to know how compose herself around the people she considered her friends. Besides, she had a feeling that the one named Clark would be able to help her find the crystals, as long as she acted innocent and conflicted enough.

As Isobel quietly crept down a large, widely curved staircase, she heard voices come down from somewhere below. She followed the voices quietly, not wanting to show herself just yet. For all she knew, they were discussing Lana and the crystals.

They were indeed discussing Lana, she found out, but not the crystals. Isobel listened intently, hoping to hear something if import.

"Your friend wasn't lying when she said that Lana had a great destiny," Kent announced to the three teenagers seated before him. Zatanna, Clark, Bart, Inza, and Kent had assembled in the same room as they had the day before, when Clark had had his little outburst over Alicia's death.

"But the question, Kent, is what the destiny itself is. None of us can find any answers to it, not even a clue as to whether it's a good thing or a bad thing. All we know is that her destiny is great. That doesn't really help us out much." Zatanna said

"I agree it doesn't. You need to realize, though, that it is all relative. Things aren't as easy as good or bad, Zatanna. They never are. This destiny of hers…this prophecy, it was a long time coming. It's been written for centuries, and nothing can stop it from coming to pass. Not supernatural interference, not natural death…nothing. Prophecies always have a way of coming true, because once a prophecy is written down by a being of power, and claimed as such…well…you know what they say. The pen is mightier than the sword."

"Then why not take the written prophecy and destroy it?" Bart asked.

"Again, it isn't that simple."

"Can't you at least tell us what that destiny is?" Zatanna asked, exasperated. What was it with these magic types and keeping everything one big, honking secret?

"You won't like it. And you can't change it."

"Tell us," Zatanna pleaded. "Please. This whole not knowing deal…it's becoming too difficult. Too unbearable. Please…Kent. Can't you do this much for your friend's daughter?"

Kent was silent for a moment, mulling over his options. After a moment of silence too long, he nodded and said, "Fine, it's best you be prepared. But not here. No one else may hear of this," he said, transforming once more into his Dr. Fate guise.

He tore a part of the fabric of reality with a golden ankh and motioned for his wife and the three teenagers to get inside.

"Why inside?" Zatanna asked, peering at her reflection in Dr. Fate's helmet.

"Because this tower is unsafe. It sits on a magickal crossroads on its own, and who knows who may hear of this."

Zatanna nodded and, taking the lead, stepped inside the portal.

Once they were all inside, Dr. Fate shared with them the prophecy.

They listened on, stunned. Shocked. Scared. And wishing they had never asked.

Isobel cursed to herself. She wouldn't learn of the prophecy. Not that it mattered, after all. With Lana now gone, did the prophecy really have any validity?

Writer's Note: Hey guys. :-D. Ahh, the goddess essence. It's not gone in the least. It's still in Lana's physical form, and it actually ends up helping Isobel somewhat. You'll see how soon enough. Nothing major or full of fireworks, but it aids in its own little way.

Anyway, yeah…I should have another update (time willing) up by the end of the week.

Hope you guys liked the chapter and please keep on reading and reviewing, yeah?

Until then!