Showdown, Part 1
- - - December 11th - - -
Batman was irritated.
It was just a few minutes before the scheduled beginning of their second attempt at a full member's assembly this winter. Most participants had already arrived at the Watchtower's largest meeting room, their temporarily repurposed Zeta station, standing around and chattering idly.
Yet something felt wrong.
His eyes were drawn to his princess first. To his relief, Diana of Themyscira seemed perfectly content, discussing holiday plans with Aquaman and the two Hawks. Behind them, J'onn was operating the sleek black coffee machine and chiding the Flash for stealing too many cookies from the open snack bar. Captain Atom and both Green Lanterns were watching the familiar scene, probably betting on how long the Martian would be able to hold the speedster off this time. Green Arrow, carrying his own to-go coffee cup, stood nearby, listening to the some story by the League's magician. Captain Marvel helped Black Canary arrange the last chairs around the U-shaped conference table, while Red Tornado was setting up the holographic screens. Superman was the last one to arrive, smiling happily as he stepped out of the Zeta station at the far end of the room.
Batman's frown deepened. What had he missed?
He watched his Amazon lover – love? - excuse herself from her companions to join J'onn at the snack bar, pouring herself a cup of coffee just the way she liked it. Lot's of cream and just a hint of sugar.
His pulse suddenly quickened. Coffee. Why on Earth would Ollie bring store-bought coffee to the Watchtower?
He snapped his head around towards the green-clad archer.
Still looking at Zatara, Green Arrow's right hand slowly reached into his paper cup. A withering black mass extended from between his fingers, revealing something dark and dangerous.
Before Batman could react in any way, Black Canary screamed.
And the Zeta portal imploded.
"Recognized – B-06 – Speedy. Recognized – B-06 – Speedy."
Roy and Red Arrow stepped out of the Fawcett City Zeta tube, frowning.
"Someone's got to change...", Roy started.
"We should really update...", his older clone spoke at the same time, then cut himself off.
Slightly embarrassed, they exited the photo booth hiding the Zeta access point, finding themselves in a peaceful back alley.
"So you're not calling yourself Speedy any longer?", Red Arrow tried to break the awkward silence.
"No, but I haven't chosen a new code name yet. Nothing with arrows, though, don't worry." He was looking for something a bit broader this time.
The other nodded.
Side by side, they headed towards the Fawcett City Clinic. Some android doctor newly affiliated with the genomorphs had offered to check up on Roy's regrowing arm today. Since Roy had no intention of ever returning to the Cadmus institute, this was the next best option. Red Arrow had come over from Star City just to escort him to the hospital, still acting strangely protective around him.
At this point, Roy suspected that the only reason his clone hadn't left for Asia yet was that he wanted to see that stupid nucleic growth-tank come off first.
Which was kind of comforting, actually.
Mary had been supposed to accompany Roy to his appointment with this Doctor Lockhart as well, yet she'd excused herself at the last minute, insisting that the two boys needed a chance to talk in private.
Well then. Time to make conversation.
"Everything packed for your trip yet?"
"Yeah. Although, regarding the passport…" Red Arrow hesitated. "Would you mind if I keep using our middle name? Yours, I mean…"
Oh. Roy had never really thought about that particular conundrum.
"You mean, you'd be Will Harper?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I suppose, why not? Guardian is still registered as Jim Harper, like our great-granddad, right?"
Will nodded. "You don't mind?"
Roy shrugged with his left arm, his feeble right still immobilized by the container hidden underneath his coat.
"No, I don't think so. Actually, it's kind of nice, you know? Not to be the only one left."
Will nodded in understanding. Roy was startled by the sudden realization that the other, indeed, understood him perfectly.
For a long moment, they walked side by side in silence.
"Tell me more about yourself", Roy finally asked. "About the past years. What was it like?"
"What was what like?" Will raised an eyebrow teasingly.
"Oh, you know. Growing up, all that. You went out with Kaitlyn?"
"Dude, forget Kaitlyn! Let me tell you about this black-haired assassin I've kept running into…"
"The one who tried to kill you?"
"Well, I'm still alive, ain't I? She actually left the League of Shadows now, and we've been texting quite a bit over the past weeks."
"Black hair, you say?"
"Like you wouldn't believe it! Let me try to find you a picture…"
The Watchtower erupted into chaos. Dinah's piercing Canary Cry destroyed the Zeta station, sending pieces of wreckage pivot all across the room. The air was filled with shouts and orders and the crackling buzz of electricity. Everyone was trying to interfere at once.
Batman forced himself to ignore the obvious distraction.
Green Arrow had pulled a small black dagger from his cup.
A batarang embedded itself deep into the archer's arm, Batman's taser connected with his chest, yet the man that looked like Ollie did not even blink. With one swift motion, he plunged the ominous knife into Zatara's back.
The Dark Knight was at the mage's side in an instant, trying to pull the bladed weapon out immediately, yet its handle dissolved between his fingers. A short but terrible wail escaped from Zatara's lips before he collapsed heavily against Batman's shoulder. Ripping off the mage's shirt, he could only watch a black taint spreading from the wound. Zatara was still breathing raggedly, yet below his pale skin his veins were darkening.
Batman locked eyes with whatever had become of Green Arrow. "What did you do to him?"
"Just spreading a bit of turmoil…" The voice might have been Ollie's, yet his high whining tone belonged to another. "The Chaos Dagger's taint will never leave him. Such a shame that he wasn't wearing the helmet just now, he would have dropped like a rag doll… It's always so much fun to kill the hosts, don't you think?"
The possessed archer looked down at his suddenly hand-cuffed wrists. Batman had also stealthily relieved the man of all other weapons he had carried. You'd think the villains would learn, yet baiting them into a gloat still worked every time.
A short glance across his shoulder told him that the rest of the League was done binding and gagging Black Canary as well.
"You're no fun at all", the creature pouted. "And I didn't even finish my coffee..."
Finally, Batman remembered what the withering black mass had reminded him off. The cup, now empty, lay discarded on the floor.
"Green Lanterns, shield us all! Now!"
Half a second later, all of the Watchtower's airlocks burst open. A soundless explosion ripped all unfastened items out into the vacuum of space.
So much for the snack bar.
A glowing green force field safely encased the startled Justice League members and their two captives.
"What is happening?", Superman demanded to know.
Batman whirled around towards J'onn. "No mind link!", he bellowed. The Martian nodded.
"Green Arrow and Black Canary were somehow possessed by the Lord of Chaos Klarion", he explained, more calmly now. "They also smuggled a bladed weapon and a cup full of nanobots onto the Watchtower, stabbing Zatara and corrupting the satellite's controls."
Red Tornado had already begun to assess the damage. "Several Watchtower systems have been compromised, including air lock control and propulsion."
Batman could tell that Klarion was about to make a snide comment. He prevented it by gagging the possessed archer as well, then added ear plugs and a blindfold for good measure. A few seconds later, Dinah and Ollie were both thoroughly cut off from their surroundings.
Two down – how many more to go?
Diana seemed to share his concerns. She whipped out her Lasso of Truth. "I need everyone to touch this. Now, answer me truthfully: Is anyone else here controlled by the Witch Boy, or by any other foreign entity?"
"No", they chorused, all firmly holding on to the glowing golden rope.
"He could have eased off his possession for a moment", Batman cautioned. "Have any of you been directly or indirectly controlled by Klarion in the past, or by any other member of the Light, or know of plans that will result in you being controlled by them in the future?"
"No", they repeated.
"Good." Diana retrieved her lasso. "How is Zatara's health?"
"He is unconscious, but his vital signs seem stable", Captain Atom reported, kneeling at the magician's side. "That black taint looks vicious, but at least the stab wound is barely even bleeding."
"Are we save in this green bubble?" Hawkwoman asked wearily. "Will it hold the air?"
"Our shields are made to withstand the vacuum of space indefinitely", Hal reassured her.
"Still, include that locker in your force field", Batman instructed the Green Lanterns, pointing. "Everyone should put on an air mask, just in case."
Every room at the tower held a stash of sixteen breathing devices. It had seemed a pretty obvious precaution. There were spacesuits, too, for those who needed them.
"What's the status of the Watchtower?", Aquaman inquired. "Is Klarion piloting us now?"
"Has he hacked our files?", the Flash voiced the more crucial concern.
"Our data security has not been breached", Red Tornado reported. "Since the team first encountered this nanotech weapon in August, we have installed defences against it on all our digital equipment. I have already neutralized most of the nanobots that entered the tower, the full purge should be complete within 16 seconds."
"If they didn't hack us, how did they open the air locks?", Captain Marvel asked flatly.
Red Tornado's black eyes were unreadable. "They clumped together", he stated slowly. "Then they mechanically pushed the override buttons on our control panels. They also attacked our propulsion system by physically reorienting the thrusters and then clogging up all mechanisms required for realigning them."
For a moment, Batman just stared at him indignantly.
"That is not how you use nanobots", the Flash finally cried out. "That tech is advanced enough to bypass all our security sensors without triggering alerts, and then he uses it like play-dough? That's ridiculous!"
"Purge complete", Red Tornado announced.
Somewhere far below them, a bald man watched the last disgraceful little status light on his screen flicker out of existence.
Pushing buttons. Really.
He hated contract work.
Lex Luthor fought down the irrational urge to wash his hands.
"I have already shut down all affected thrusters. However, one misaligned blast has severely damaged the shuttle docking at airlock three", Red Tornado finished his report.
"Okay, so why did Klarion try to contain us up here?", Captain Marvel inquired.
Batman nodded approvingly. That kid was asking the right questions.
"When he attacked Zatara, he expected him to still be Nabu's host", he reported.
Aquaman frowned. "Then he didn't know about the switch yet?"
"If that's true, he'll be looking for his helmet next", Diana deduced. "Is Klarion going to attack the Tower of Fate again?"
Batman shook his head. "Not likely. Doctor Fate relocated it on the astral plane and significantly upgraded its defences. It's more probable that Klarion will search out any other potential hosts he knows of."
"Zatanna", J'onn concluded darkly. "That means he's coming for the team."
The Flash jumped to his feet. "How do we help them?"
"Their communications were shut down", Batman growled, checking his wrist computer. Klarion's magic had somehow blocked off not only the team's communicators and their internet access, but also all of Batman's and Robin's substitute systems.
"Can we just tell that Witch Boy that he's mistaken?", the Flash proposed, already unfastening the blindfold on Ollie's face. The archer's eyes remained closed. When the Flash nudged him, his head lolled back impassively.
"He's unconscious. Klarion must have severed their connection."
"I'll fly to the surface, then", Superman announced, checking the clasps on his air mask.
Batman glanced at his wrist computer once more. "You'll have to", he agreed, scanning the sudden inflow of news alerts. "Not just to help out at Mount Justice. Send Nabu there first. We've got Vandal Savage running havoc in Manhattan, Ra's al Ghul taking some politicians hostage in Las Vegas, and there's been a prison break at Belle Reve."
"Who got out?"
"Everybody."
Superman never cursed, but right now he looked like he wanted to.
"All right. Lanterns, let me out of this force field."
They complied.
"I'll follow", Captain Atom offered. "I can deal with Manhattan."
With a short nod, Superman took off.
"Should I fly to Las Vegas, then?", Green Lantern John asked. "Hal can keep up the force field alone."
"Wait", Diana pleaded. "Those incidents were clearly engineered as distractions. Splitting up like this could be exactly what our enemies expect us to do. I don't like it."
"Why don't we all return to the surface?", Captain Marvel proposed unexpectedly. "We might have lost the Zeta portal and the shuttle, but either John or Hal could still transport all of us down safely in this bubble shield, right?"
"We'll have to descend rather slowly", John cautioned. "But except for that, yes, no problem. I can fly us all down."
"I would feel a lot better if we were able to get Zatara to the infirmary soon", the Flash admitted.
"And figure out how to help Green Arrow and Black Canary", Diana added.
"I shall remain behind, to begin the necessary repairs to the air locks and our Zeta station", Red Tornado offered.
Hal nodded thoughtfully. "I'll stay with you, just in case", he decided. "We'll take care of the Watchtower together."
Batman nodded briskly. "Agreed. Let's go."
He knew that they would be far too slow to help the team in any meaningful manner.
They could only hope that Superman would send Nabu to them in time.
- - - A few minutes earlier - - -
"How about something classy, like Merlin, or Nick as in Nicholas Flamel?", Tanna proposed, sipping on her hot cocoa.
"Oh, are we looking for wizard names now?", Wally teased, taking another bite from his breakfast roll. "How about Gandalf, Radagast, Rincewind, Mustrum, Albus, Severus, Sirius, Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon, Mace…"
Robin chuckled, refilling his cup of tea. Did Jedi really count as magicians?
"Don't be ridiculous", Artemis chided the speedster. "You'll want something normal. What about Jacob, Mark, Daniel, Max or Lucas?"
"Please don't say John", Robin pleaded.
Megan shrugged. "Nothing too common, then. Maybe Edward, or Richard?"
Robin's frown deepened. Wally smirked at him across the breakfast table.
"Colin", Mary proposed.
Conner nodded thoughtfully, petting Wolf's head. "That's not bad."
"Koll'in'raj is a common name in my home town, Shayeris", Aqualad noted.
Robin's attention was drawn to a small error message flashing on his phone.
"Weird, I just lost connection to the internet." He did a quick routine check of the cave's systems, his stomach dropping farther with every result.
Locking eyes with Megan, he twirled his index finger, their code signal for establishing a group link.
'What's up, Robin?'
'All systems went offline, including our Zeta station. Last time that happened was during the red android reunion.'
"Let's go to the beach", Aqualad announced loudly, rising from his chair. "It's a nice morning, how about a game of volleyball?"
"Jolly good", a terribly familiar voice answered. "I do love a good match."
Klarion the Witch Boy was leaning leisurely against their kitchen door, stroking his demon cat.
Wolf growled at the intruders.
"Elor lasrever", Klarion chanted, shrinking their canine companion to the size of a mouse. They watched in horror as the tiny white wolf smartly disappeared into a crack beneath the kitchen sink, just in time to evade the pouncing demon cat's claws.
"Don't you dare even think about laying your hands on Teekl", the Witch Boy added casually.
'That size-change was not an illusion', Tanna gasped silently.
Quite impressively, Kaldur stayed perfectly calm.
"You are welcome to join our game, Lord Klarion", he stated, bowing deeply in the Atlantean fashion. "We will set up the volleyball net down near the bay, if that pleases you. The hangar doors are just at the end of this hallway, would you be so kind to lead the way?"
Clearly amused by their leader's audacity, the Witch Boy actually stepped out into the hall.
Immediately, their mind link erupted into a clamour of agitated voices.
'What's he doing here?'
'We're all dead, right?'
'How did he get in?'
'How do we get help?'
'We're not seriously gonna play volleyball with that monster, right?'
One by one, they filed out of the kitchen. Robin noted that even Mary follow them closely, not daring to anger the Chaos Mage by remaining behind. Only the tiny Wolf stayed wisely out of view.
'Kaldur, do you have a plan?'
'I don't, but these close quarters can only be our disadvantage. Zatanna, do you have any way to contact Doctor Fate?'
'No, but he will sense Klarion's chaotic energy, once he uses too much of his magic. I don't know how long that will take, though.'
'Then we'll just have to survive long enough. Do not risk hurting the cat, we know that he has cursed it. Remember our last fight. He's less lethal if we keep him entertained.'
'Sounds like a plan', Wally tried hard to sound confident. 'Let's bring the chaos!'
The Witch Boy turned around abruptly.
"You're being impolite", he pouted. They had almost reached the hangar bay by now, the parked cars and motorcycles were already within view.
"It's not nice to talk behind my back…"
His hand suddenly lit up with fire, pointing straight as Megan's throat.
Klarion's voice was still soft, but his eyes had taken a dark red colour. "Cease this", he ordered.
"Do as he says", Aqualad confirmed calmly.
Their mind link shattered.
"Volleyball is boring", the ageless mage mused, his hand still burning. "Why don't we play truth or dare instead?"
"How about hide and seek?", Wally countered quickly.
"Even better. Where did you hide the golden helmet that I seek? I dare you to tell me the truth!"
"It's in Atlantis", Aqualad replied earnestly. "We don't have it here."
"You think it would be safe from me under the water?" The Chaos Mage's evil grin spread unnaturally wide. "It's out of your reach, then, not out of mine… So your teachers and heroes have left you all defenceless in your little cave, your only hope hidden below the seas, while they carouse among the stars?"
The flames between his fingers dwindled. Somehow, that did not diminish the dread the pale, devil-horned boy elicited. His demon cat rubbed against his legs, even its purr a vibrating menace, echoing through the cavernous hall.
"Tell me something fun, then. Tell me their secrets. Who are Superman's loved ones? Where does the Batman sleep?" His grin was as viscous as his questions. "Is it true that the Queen of Atlantis is with child?"
None of them were able to form a coherent reply.
Klarion glowered. Suddenly, all exits of the spacious hanger bay filled up with roaring fire. Even the water tank near the bay door was suddenly coated with a thin film of dancing scarlet flames.
Was that enough magic to alert the Lord of Order?, Robin wondered idly.
With one impossible motion, the Witch Boy appeared right at Mary's side, his long-nailed finger caressing her throat. "Do you want to go first, little human? I can sense magic on you. Tell me your secrets, girl, and I might kill you painlessly."
Robin felt chilled to his bones. Mary could transform, of course, but her petrification spell was ancient – which meant that the ageless boy might recognize it. If he cast 'Oivila', she'd have no choice but to change back…
"Code Green, Wings of the Red Witch", Mary said slowly, looking straight into the Chaos Mage's eyes.
Robin blinked. Yes, this scene did bear a certain resemblance to her staged encounter with the alleged Mr Green in Gotham, but how did that help her?
The winged witch of the red planet, though – that had been a formidable distraction.
"And what would that mean?", Klarion inquired, his voice high and oily.
"It means I'm on your side!", Mary groaned, rolling her eyes theatrically. "Why are you making me blow my cover like this?"
The Witch Boy actually dropped his hand from her neck. "You're what?"
Robin managed to catch Miss Martian's eyes, twirling his finger once more.
"I'm working for Luthor and the Light! Please, hasn't he told you anything? Not even his code phrases? I've been spying on these kids for half a year now, when al Ghul's Broken Arrow wasn't even allowed into their club house!"
The mage narrowed his demonic eyes. "What is your magic, girl?"
"It's not magic! It's nano-sorcery, enchanted nanobots cursing through my veins. I'm not a magician, just a vessel, gathering intel, biding my time…"
"I invented nano-sorcery", the Witch Boy hissed. "How did Luthor lay his hands on this?"
"You did?" Her face lit up with awe. "That's brilliant! I love the way it integrates with my body. The nano-shield is amazing! It's a shame it takes so long to deconstruct it…"
"What are you talking about?" The mage's burning eyes were only inches from her face now, both his clawed hands digging deep into her shoulders.
"Well, this, of course."
And Mary turned to stone.
The Lord of Chaos's exasperated fire blast completely failed to do her any harm.
By the time Klarion whirled around towards the rest of the team, they were ready for him.
'Go!', Kaldur shouted through the re-instated mind link.
Conner heaved open the heavy hangar doors, Tanna whispered a spell to redirect the flames, and Megan dropped a levitated car onto the Chaos Mage.
Of course Klarion incinerated the falling vehicle before it caught him, yet this caused a shower of metal debris to rain down all over the hangar. Aqualad shielded his team with his water bearers, yet Teekl, hissing savagely, leapt out of the way in the opposite direction, getting perilously close to one of the other flaming doorways. With a wave of his hand, Klarion extinguished his dancing fires to protect his demon cat.
Immediately seizing the unexpected opportunity, Aqualad reshaped his arcane shield into a watery tendril, attempting to pull the Witch Boy down into the now open water basin.
Drowning Klarion didn't work, of course, but the attempt bought them a few more seconds – enough not only for Robin, Conner, Megan, Tanna and Artemis to slip out through the shattered bay door, but also for Wally to complete a quick supply run, rounding up weapons and equipment. Kaldur, still inside the cave, evaded the recovered mage's retaliating fire bolt by diving into the water tank himself, escaping through the hidden channel connecting the cave with the ocean.
'Here he comes!'
When Klarion burst out of the unhinged metal portal, two batarangs and one of Artemis' foam arrows greeted him. He swatted them aside, yet was unable to evade all of Kid Flash's water balloons as well. Wally was shouting "For Count Nefarious!" like a war cry.
Tanna's first spell was "Tnaig wollamhsram nam!"
After her last encounter with the Lord of Chaos, they'd spent a long time thinking up creative spells for her that didn't involve moths.
At Klarion's feet, a paint mine exploded, splattering his black suit with something pink and gluey – a revised version of Artemis' synthetic foam, curtesy of Roy's experiments, less durable and yet far stickier.
Robin let his cackle echo across the clearing, as he loaded his paintball gun with Roy's new goo missiles.
Tanna's giant marshmallow man swatted down at the magician.
"Evlossid otni rellams swollamhsram", Klarion countered. "Nrut otni elittil wollamhsram sreidlos!"
An army of candy men started marching towards the team.
The battle of Mount Justice had begun.
"Queen Mera, I've got an urgent message for Nabu", Superman yelled into his League communicator. He was still airborn, rushing down towards Earth. It had taken far too many precious minutes until he had finally been able to establish contact with Atlantis.
"Doctor Fate must return to the surface as fast as he can! The team is in danger, we suspect that Klarion the Witch Boy is attacking them!"
"He knows", the Queen informed him calmly. "He sensed their fight a few moments ago. He is already on his way."
Tanna dodged a flying pig and retreated into the undergrowth to catch her breath. Conner had temporarily filled her overwatch position, floating high above the eastern flank of the mountain, sustained by Megan's telekinesis. It seemed like the two of them had practised this maneuver before.
Near the bay, Kaldur was currently attacking Klarion with shark-shaped blobs of water, making them leap straight from the lagoon. Of course he was very careful not to accidentally target Teekl, since they all remembered that the demon cat hated water, and survival was still the prime directive here.
Wally appeared by Tanna's side, dropping off a first aid kit for her blistered hand and a much-appreciated water bottle. The speedster had thankfully resisted the temptation of devouring the distasteful candy soldiers earlier, and was still able to dash in and out of the cave to restock the team's supplies, refill their never-ending arsenal of water balloons and fetch anything else they could use for a creative attack. Mainly pots and pans, currently, at Robin's latest request.
The Boy Wonder had been incredible throughout the fight. The skateboards had been his idea, and the magical snowmen, and Tanna still couldn't believe the thing with the bean cans had actually worked.
It would have been fun, if it hadn't been so lethal.
If the Witch Boy didn't like what they threw at him, he made it deadly. Artemis had been cut badly by the shrapnel from an exploding alarm clock. Only sheer luck had saved Wally from loosing both legs when Klarion changed one of their paint mines into an actual mine. The bed sheet attack had been a terrible idea as well. He'd turned them into blood-chilling phantoms.
Tanna had exhausted a large part of her magic reserves to finally defeat the ghosts, asserting that the ghastly spectres were still made of fabric, that they could still burn…
They had to keep the Witch Boy entertained.
'The last pig is down', Artemis reported through their mind link. 'Anything else to shoot?'
'Sky seems clear for now', Conner replied.
'We need something new', Aqualad ordered, now flinging flying fish at his opponent. 'I don't want to risk Sphere yet, who knows what he'll transform her into. What else have we got?'
'Noise', Robin replied instantly. 'We haven't even started with noise yet. Music, drums and trumpets!'
'Good', Kaldur agreed. 'Make it loud, distract him. We'll launch a direct attack from inside the cave when his back is exposed. Megan, is your heat shield spell still up? Good. You and Conner do a double charge, but you stay invisible, okay? I'll distract the cat.'
'All right.'
'Getting ready now.'
'You want a forest orchestra?', Tanna inquired. 'It's an old spell, a simple illusion, won't drain me much.'
'Agreed', their leader responded.
'Work your magic', Robin cheered.
Smiling faintly despite her wariness, she waved her hands. "Seert, tel rouy sevael elgnij! Smoorhsum, trats gnitaeb ekil smurd!"
The chiming and thumping was deafening.
Mary woke to a terrible cacophony.
A golden cloak had been wrapped around her shoulders. Doctor Fate stood before her, a glowing yellow gem in his hand.
"You must come with me", he commanded.
It turned out the Witch Boy's cat hated noise almost as much as water.
Kaldur did his best to cover his team's retreat, swinging his right water bearer feebly. He knew it wasn't much use.
Klarion had started swatting them with trees.
Their mind link was down. Megan had passed out from sheer exhaustion, after using up the last reserves of her telekinetic powers to save Artemis from being squashed under a jingling pine tree. Conner had caught the giant maple that would have flattened Zatanna. The enchantress had dispelled her illusionary orchestra almost instantly, but it seemed that the Witch Boy didn't care about their little game any longer.
Kaldur staggered deeper into the forest, clenching his teeth. His left arm was probably broken. Their communicators were still offline. Artemis was our of arrows, Zatanna out of magic, and Kid Flash's legs had wobbled dangerously as he carried the unconscious Martian out of the Witch Boy's reach.
He could only hope that Robin had found a safe place to hide – he didn't even know where he'd lost sight of his youngest team mate.
A wave of self-doubt washed over him, yet Kaldur did not allow himself to wallow.
Not now. They were still alive. The ageless Lord of Chaos had invaded their home base, and they had held their ground so far. He could be proud of his team.
Some of them might even make it out alive.
"Code Blue!" Conner's shout pierced the rustling calm of the forest.
Finally! Kaldur almost dropped to his knees.
Doctor Fate had arrived.
"Now you show up?" the Lord of Chaos wailed indignantly. "I've been waiting!"
"I am here to vanquish you, Klarion", the Lord of Order proclaimed, stepping out onto the clearing.
Mary did her best to look small and insignificant behind him, carefully keeping her distance.
"Vanquish me?" A shrill cackle escaped the ageless boy. "Who is your host, Nabu? Some poor kid from Atlantis? Are they even trained in sorcery?" His hands lit up with flames. "You think your golden shields can protect you forever?"
"They don't have to", Nabu replied calmly.
Laughing manically, the Witch Boy launched a stream of fire at his eternal opponent.
Nabu made no motion to block it at all.
Mary could sense the scorching heat, the blazing intensity of the fire. The air above the two ancient mages started to shimmer.
Nabu only smiled.
Fully enraged now, Klarion increased the heat further, pouring more and more of his power into the flames. It was painful to watch their white-hot glow now, yet Mary did not dare avert her eyes.
"How is this possible?", the Witch Boy screeched, finally throwing his hands up in exasperation.
"Your reign of chaos is ending", Nabu simply replied, not raising to the bait. With his left hand, he beckoned Mary to step closer.
She complied.
Nabu raised his yellow artefact, the Gem of Duplication.
"DUPLICARE."
The incantation rang heavy in her ears. A faint yellow glow surrounded her.
"EXIRE."
The Lord of Chaos was enshrined in a similar light.
"What, are you trying to duplicate us both?", the Witch Boy scoffed. Yet his tone sounded slightly more brittle than usual.
"This artefact is not meant to copy people, creatures or dimensions", Nabu stated. "You have never truly grasped its power. It replicates spells."
"But the girl's not…" Mary saw the horrible realization dawn in the ageless boy's eyes.
"MEDURO."
Author's note:
The Watchtower is breached, and the team has to battle an invincible foe - please let me know how you like this showdown!
I really enjoyed writing Klarion as the team's main opponent, because he's incredibly powerful and deviously evil and yet still, somehow, just a pouty kid who doesn't like being bored...
(By the way: In my version, Teekl really is Klarion's only weakness, so he has cast a terrible curse that would be triggered if any harm befell his familiar. It would have been too easy if "Go for the cat!" was a viable solution.)
Please review and let me know what you think!