Justice League of Amazons: Fire & Blood
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Chapter 4
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The Watchtower in Earth's orbit.
Aegon sat down heavily at the cafeteria table with a tired sigh. It had been a long and strenuous day dealing the politics of this world. His father figure and mentor Lord Jon Connington had trained him in statecraft and the intrigues of the court, but he hadn't expected it to be this bloody exhausting!
The rest of the Justice League looked tired from the day's events as well. Aegon supposed that they were more used to fighting criminals than dealing with political intrigue. Hawkgirl looked less tired than all the others, but she still had something of a tired look in her eyes.
"Well, that went well as expected," the Thanagarian stated.
"You think?" Helena asked from her spot at the table, a bottle of water in her hand and she took a long draught of the hydrating liquid.
"Well, I don't really know, but no-one seemed to ask Aegon too many intrusive questions or make absurd requests," said Shayera. "But other than that, I'd say it went well," she added.
"Well, I could see more than a few people who weren't happy to see Wonder Woman among us," Dinah put in as she sipped her own bottle of water.
"Couldn't be avoided," Shayera replied. "With what Aresia did, there's gonna be a lot of hatred for the Amazons for the time being. But I think Aegon's words about giving Diana and the Amazons the benefit of the doubt helped," she said giving Aegon a glance.
"From what you told me, milady, Lady Diana had no part in Aresia's plans to wipe out all men on this world," said Aegon. "It was only right to give her that chance to show that not all Amazons would go to such lengths," he added.
"I appreciate it, Aegon," Diana said with a soft smile before she stretched in her chair and said, "I'm going to the gym," she declared and stood up. "Anyone want to spar with me?" she asked the group.
"I'd like to," Aegon said quickly standing up from his chair. "I'm curious to see how Amazons fight," he added.
"I think we could all fit in a couple of sparring sessions," Shayera said firmly. "Most of Earth's criminals are gone but that doesn't mean we should slack off," she added. Everyone else nodded their agreement and headed to the workout room. Diana quickly went to her room to grab her own weapons that she had managed to take with her before being exiled from Themyscira.
Aegon looked around the gym with curiosity in his violet eyes. The equipment here was very alien to him and he did not know the purpose of any them.
"Never seen stuff like this before?" Zatanna asked him. Aegon shook his head and replied, "No, never. I mostly trained with weapons and the like."
"Guess we have a lot to teach you then," Dinah said as she took off her leather jacket leaving her shoulders and arms bare. Aegon tried not to stare at the smooth near flawless skin of the blonde siren's body. "Drop something?" she asked him and Aegon mumbled an apology and looked away.
"Hey, it's okay," Dinah said to Aegon kindly. "I'm used to people staring at me. I really don't care if you do," she added.
"I shouldn't be," Aegon replied trying not to look at Dinah. "I shouldn't be looking at any of you!" he then said.
"Trust us, Aegon. Staring at us is the least of your worries," Mari said to Aegon with a slight hint of amusement in her brown eyes. "We're not gonna castrate you for staring at us. I for one wouldn't mind if you stared at me from time to time," she added.
"Can we just… get on with this already?" Aegon asked in a terse voice.
"Okay, enough teasing!" Shayera said commandingly. "We should all be here to see what we're capable of and how we can improve," she added.
"So, who here has martial arts training?" the redhaired Thanagarian asked. Dinah and Helena put their hands up immediately and they both glanced at each other, frowning slightly as if recognising each other as potential competition.
"Okay, so let's see who's the better of you in the ring," Shayera ordered them. "No gadgets or powers. Just skill," she then said.
Helena's frown deepened but she said, "Fine." And she then took off her utility belt and repeater crossbow and set them down on a nearby bench. Dinah did some quick stretches to limber up and Helena did so as well.
Facing each other, Dinah and Helena both got into a fighting stance, their legs spread apart and knees slightly bent and their hands raised in front of them. For a moment neither moved until Shayera gave the signal to begin.
"Begin!"
Helena charged forward going into a series of cartwheels before leaping into the air and did a spinning kick aimed at Dinah's head. Dinah leaned back so that Helena's high-heeled boot missed her face by inches. Helena then brought her other leg up to kick again when Dinah grabbed the offending limb and threw her to the side in a judo throw. Helena skidded to the padded floor but quick jumped back onto her feet, only to bring her arms up to block an onslaught of punches and kicks from Dinah.
Dinah's form was near flawless as she threw punches and kicks at Helena who did her best to block all the strikes. Getting impatient, Helena threw a blind jab at Dinah who moved back to avoid the strike. Capitalising on the interruption, Helena grabbed the blonde's wrist and twisted it making her cry out in pain. Throwing three punches into Dinah's stomach, Helena then threw the blonde to the side. Jumping back onto her feet, Dinah got into a ready stance and circled Helena carefully. With a confident bordering on arrogant smirk, Helena charged again, executing another set of cartwheels towards her opponent. Dinah simply smirked before delivering a roundhouse kicked into Helena's stomach knocking the brunette to the floor and the wind out of her. Gasping only for a moment, Helena rolled back onto her feet and charged again, her beautiful face twisted into a scowl. The Italian brunette was angry now and she began throwing punches and kicks at Dinah who blocked her strikes with ease before grabbing her arms, flipped her over onto her back before leaping onto the brunette and pinned her to the floor.
A dark scowl was on Helena's face and Dinah's expression was one of amusement. Grudgingly, Helena tapped the floor in defeat, conceding the fight. Dinah got up off Helena and offered her hand. Still scowling, Helena accepted the blonde's hand and was pulled back to her feet.
"Well done, you two," Shayera said to the them both. "You're both very well-trained," she remarked.
"My mother and Wildcat taught me everything I know," Dinah said with a hint of sorrow in her azure eyes.
"My cousins taught me to fight," Helena said with an equal amount of sorrow in her dark eyes.
"Well, it was a close match, so I think you two can share the duty of training everyone here," Shayera said to them. "So, who's next?" she asked the rest of the group.
"I'd like to try," Aegon announced as he set Blackfyre aside and asked, "Do we have any training swords?"
"We have one or two," Shayera said. "Would you to try against me?" she asked with a slightly predatory smile.
"If you'd like," Aegon said guardedly as he picked out a simple wooden training sword and gave it a test swing. Shayera switched out her Nth metal mace for a practice mace and hefted it in her hands, getting used to the weight of it. In the ring, they both faced each other; Aegon rested the flat of his training sword on his left forearm and Shayera held her practice mace in both hands, her grip tight on it. Kara then gave the signal to begin by yelling, "Fight!"
With a roaring battlecry, Shayera launched herself at Aegon and swung her mace at Aegon's head. Aegon barely managed to duck the swing in time and thrust his sword at Shayera's stomach. Shayera moved back swiftly and Aegon thrust his sword rapidly at Shayera forcing her to move until she slapped aside the blunted point of Aegon's sword and delivered a kick to Aegon's chest. Grunting in pain, Aegon stumbled back, holding his bruised chest with one hand and glared at Shayera who grinned in response before she charged again. Swinging her mace in a figure eight motion, Shayera forced Aegon toward the edge of the sparring mat. Out of desperation, Aegon suddenly tackled the Thanagarian to the ground and they rolled over, wrestling for control. Until at last, Shayera was on top, resting the bar of her mace across Aegon's throat and said to him, "Submit!"
Aegon growled his anger before he suddenly flexed his hips and Shayera was flipped over onto her back. Leaping up, Aegon stabbed his practice sword near Shayera's head. Shayera quickly avoided the strike and swung her mace out blindly. This time, Shayera knocked Aegon off his feet, making him fall to the ground with a grunt and a thud. Not taking another chance, Shayera knocked Aegon's sword away and leapt on top of him, one hand at his throat and her mace raised ready for a kill.
"Yield!" Aegon yelled out quickly. "I yield," he then said in a more subdued tone.
Shayera panted in relief before standing up and pulling Aegon to his feet and said to him, "You did good. You were trained well," she congratulated him.
"I yielded," Aegon muttered unhappily. "How could I have done good?" he added.
"Hey, you lasted longer against me than I thought you would've," replied Shayera. "You had more skill than I first realised, and I very nearly underestimated you," she said. "That has to count for something, right?" she added.
"I still lost," Aegon muttered sullenly.
"Well, that's what training is for," Shayera said to him. "So, that when you face an enemy for real, you won't lose," she explained.
"Hmph… my teachers said the same thing," Aegon remarked sombrely and a pensive look crossed his face.
"Are you okay, Aegon?" Shayera asked in concern.
"Hmm? Oh! Yes, I'm fine," Aegon said with a reassuring smile that looked a little forced on his face. "So, what can you teach me to be better in combat?" he asked changing the subject quickly.
"Well, I imagine we all have something to teach you," Shayera replied. "And I think we're all happy to teach you what we know," she said giving the rest of the Justice League a knowing glance.
"Yeah! I'd be happy to teach you!" Kara said enthusiastically, her head bobbing up and down in excitement. And the rest of the Justice League were quick to voice their agreement.
"Well, we'll all take turns teaching and training you," Shayera declared. "Dinah and Helena can teach you martial arts, and Diana and I can teach you mêlée combat," she said. "We'll work out what the others can teach you," she added.
"I can teach Aegon how to use magic," Zatanna suggested helpfully.
"I'd be more than happy to learn magic," Aegon said with a boyish smile.
"Well, hit the showers for now, you could use it," Shayera advised him.
Aegon then headed off to the showers and as soon as he reached the showers, he stripped off his clothes and turned on the hot water. Steam filled the room as Aegon washed the sweat from his body. The remaining blue dye in his hair was washed away as well, leaving behind his pale silver-white locks of hair. After washing himself, Aegon turned off the water and wrapped a towel around his waist to preserve his modesty. Leaving the showers, Aegon was greeted by Kara.
"Oh! Hi, Aegon!" the young Kryptonian blonde greeted him chipperly.
"Milady," Aegon greeted her back formally. "The shower is all yours, if you need it," he said to her awkwardly, feeling a little self-conscious about being half-naked in front of the young blonde-haired girl who smiled in response.
"So, that's your natural hair colour, eh?" she asked looking at Aegon's pale silver hair. "It goes well with your eyes," she remarked fondly.
"Thank you," Aegon said politely. "Excuse me," he then said hoping to leave as politely as he could.
"Karen was right, you know," Kara suddenly said making Aegon stop and look at her. "You do look good without a shirt on," the young Kryptonian said with a flirty wink before heading into the showers pulling off her top as she did, showing the smooth slopes of her back and the strap of her bra. His cheeks dusted red, Aegon left quickly before he made a fool of himself and headed to the room he was given. Entering his room, Aegon changed into some casual clothing which was a pair of sweatpants, sneakers and a white t-shirt. Leaving his room, Aegon headed to the cafeteria where he found some of the other League members eating some lunch.
"Finished training?" Aegon asked Mari who nodded as she idly ate a sandwich.
"Yeah, it's a bit of a workout," the dark-skinned beauty said as she chewed a mouthful of her sandwich. After swallowing, Mari then said, "So, Aegon, what are you going to do with yourself since there's no foreseeable way back home?" she asked Aegon who blinked in response.
"I'd try to find a way back home," he admitted. "But other than that, I don't really know what to do with myself," he said sheepishly.
"Well, maybe you could take a tour of Earth?" Mari suggested. "I mean, you can't stay cooped up in here like some hermit," she said casually. "It wouldn't be good for your mental health or your physical health in the long run," she added.
"Where would you suggest I go?" asked Aegon as he took a plate of salad and ate some of it.
"Well, if you want to go anywhere, I'd like to suggest New York," Mari said with a smile. "Plenty of excitement and always things to do there," she added.
"What kind of things?"
"Oh, all sorts! There's plenty of museums to visit like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Natural History Museum. Just to name a few," replied Mari. "The Metropolitan Museum has artefacts from Medieval Europe you'd be interested in," she said with a smile.
"Medieval?" Aegon repeated the word.
"Well, basically what your world is like a couple of hundred years ago, that's what we call the medieval period of Earth," Mari explained.
Aegon nodded his head and said, "I'd very much like to see what this world was like back then."
"Well, how about you and me go down and take a look?" Mari suggested helpfully.
"What about the others? Shouldn't they come along too?" Aegon asked.
"I suppose we could ask Diana," Mari replied. "The Met has a few artefacts from ancient Greece and Rome too," she said thoughtfully.
"That sounds wonderful," Aegon smiled brightly and Mari smiled brightly too.
Mari then left to find Diana and Aegon finished off his salad. Mari soon came back with Diana in tow. "Alright, we just need to change into something more appropriate and then we'll go," the dark-skinned woman said. Aegon waited until Mari and Diana came back wearing casual wear. Aegon's eyes widened slightly as he saw what Mari and Diana were wearing. Mari wore and off-white button-up shirt with a few buttons tastefully undone to give just a hint of her cleavage and she wore dark brown leather trousers with a pair of calf length boots. Diana wore a light blue turtleneck sweater with denim pants in a dark shade of blue with black flats on her feet.
"Wow…" Aegon murmured.
"You like?" Mari asked doing a little twirl on the spot.
"It looks nice," replied Aegon a hint of pink on his cheeks. "Shall we go?" he asked.
"Yes. Let's," Diana said firmly.
Taking the Javelin, the three then flew planetside and landed just outside New York. Almost immediately, the remaining citizens of New York spotted Aegon and nearly rushed him, taking pictures and videos of him. And female paparazzi swarmed around Aegon and his two companions, all of them wanting photo ops and some nearby news crews wanted to get quotes or interviews from Aegon. Aegon was feeling a little annoyed at the attention and made to go back to the Javelin, but Mari gave him a reassuring look and he relented.
Pushing through the crowd Aegon, Mari and Diana managed to get into a taxi and asked to be taken to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A few minutes, they were dropped off the Metropolitan and entered the building. Some of the female Museum workers gushed about meeting Aegon, although their expressions soured slightly upon seeing Diana, recognising her even without her Wonder Woman outfit on. But a firm look from Aegon dissuaded them from making profane comments about Diana or her people.
Upon prompting from Mari, the museum employees gave them a private tour and the first exhibits was the Medieval Europe. Aegon spent the next forty-five minutes looking at the displays and reading the plaques of information and history. His mind was whirring with possibilities and he resolved to come bac a second time with some writing material to write down notes and sketches to bring back home.
Once Mari and Diana had dragged Aegon away from the Medieval Exhibits, they went to the Greco-Roman exhibits where Diana casually pointed out some of the flaws in the exhibits such as one statue that was Greek was actually a Roman creation. She also gave anecdotes on Greek history of what the modern scholars and academics thought happened and what actually happened. She even poked holes in the interpretation of Greek-Roman myths and gave overviews of what really happened.
Mari and Aegon then dragged Diana away from the exhibits and spent the next hour touring the rest of the Museum. Looking at the art sculptures and paintings by various artists of Earth, Aegon felt some measure of peace and a slight envy of this world's artists. There wasn't anything quite like this back home; perhaps once he returned home and he managed to reclaim the Iron Throne, he could open a museum, detailing the history of the Seven Kingdoms? It was an entertaining thought in itself.
It was nearing closing time when they had finished looking at all the exhibits. Leaving the museum, Mari asked Aegon, "So, did you enjoy yourself, Aegon?"
"I did. Very much so," replied Aegon. "I'll have to come back a second time and take down notes," he said thoughtfully.
"Getting ideas to bring back home?" Mari quipped with a smile.
"Of course. My world is still in what you might call the Dark Ages, so if I can bring even a fraction of what happened on this world back to mine, I could implement changes," said Aegon with an eager smile.
"One step at a time, Aegon. You don't know how many of your world's people will resist the changes you want to bring," Mari warned him.
"I know. But at the very least, I could try to build a museum of my own back home," Aegon said. "It'd be the first of its kind," he added.
"They don't have museums where you're from?" Diana asked, a little surprised.
"Not that I know of," Aegon admitted with a shrug of his shoulders. "I suppose there are private collectors who hoard artefacts from ancient times, but nothing like museums for everyone to look at," he said.
"Well, I hope you do build a museum back on your own world," Diana said encouragingly. "It'd be fascinating to learn the history of another world similar to Earth's a few centuries ago," she added.
"It would be, wouldn't it?" Mari put in. "And it'd be fascinating to see what differences there are between our worlds," she then said.
"Well, I can think of a few differences," Aegon said.
"Dragons? I think Earth had them once upon a time," said Mari. "But I don't think there was anything like an empire filled with silver-haired purple-eyed people," she added.
"Just one difference that comes to mind," Aegon said. "But I'm sure there are others," he added.
"Well, I look forward to seeing them," Mari said. "Say, what would you say if you wrote about your world?" she asked. "Give the people of this world an idea of what your world is like?' she suggested.
Aegon had a thoughtful look on his expression before he said, "Hmm… it has merit, I'll admit."
"Plus, you could potentially make some money out of it," Mari said. "And you could write about the real history of Greece and the real story behind the Greek Myths," she then said to Diana.
"I… hadn't thought about that before," Diana said slowly.
"Well, it seems like you two have got some serious thinking to do," Mari remarked with an amused loo in her eyes as she saw the gears whirring behind Aegon and Diana's heads. "Let's head back to the Watchtower. Shayera might be getting a little worried," she said.
And they then headed back to the Javelin and flew back to the Watchtower.
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TO BE CONTINUED…
A/N: There! Fourth chapter of this done and dusted. It's probably nothing more than a filler chapter, but at least it's something, right? Anyway, still got this out of the way so there's that.
In other news, I'm working on an Elder Scrolls/Game of Thrones crossover. I already have an Elder Scrolls/GoT oneshot crossover of the Ebony Warrior as Tyrion's champion, but I've been thinking about it for a while and I've decided to try writing a full length Elder Scrolls/GoT crossover story. I'll be taking some inspiration from my Witcher/GoT crossover in that Aegon VI and Rhaenys II Targaryen/Martell are saved from the Sack of Kings Landing and they grow up in Tamriel before travelling to Skyrim and there begins their adventures. I've set up a romance poll for Aegon and once I get the first chapter published, I'll set one up for Rhaenys so we'll see how it goes.
Anyway, not much more for me to say, so I'll just leave this here.
Be kind to one another,
Angry lil' elf.