Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Young Justice.
A/N: The poll is rather close so I will leave it up for one full rotation of stories then take it down a day or two later in case it still is close to let one get higher so be sure to vote if you haven't!
I hope you all have a safe and Happy New Year!
Beta: Chaos-PSD.
Chapter LI: Teg Ydaer!
Last Time.
"Nor would they exist if Arion's bloodline, the Homo Magi of Atlantis, had not restored order below the waves." Dr. Fate explained having Vandal nod.
"Agreed. But who will restore order in the wake of the greater chaos that the Child brings? You? With your aging host body? Nabu, you may not like Klarion, or me. But the Witch Boy is a weapon I have learned to aim, to control. And, at the very least, you know I seek the advancement of the Earth. But this new Child is beyond my control or your ability to counter. Think about that."
Warworld May 14, 01:25 EDT.
Vandal looked at the Earth before speaking to Cassandra who was standing beside him. "Commence Project Lifeboat. Send boom tubes to every member of the Light and anyone they designate. Offer the same courtesy to Ra's and his family. I doubt he'll accept, but make the offer. Secure our operations in Markovia and United Rhelasia."
"Transport the entire contents of my History Cave from beneath Khüiten Peak. And bring all Psy-Backs aboard. Anything and everything of value must be transferred off Earth to the Warworld until we see how this chaotic little drama ends."
Now.
Unlike the Chaos Lords, the Lords of Order rarely descended to Earth… Instead, they would empower a human being to act as their agent. The theory was that a mortal's earthly ties would allow for a greater understanding of the problems that Chaos created among humankind. Though perhaps, in truth, the Lords of Order simply hesitated to dirty their hands on our chaotic world.
Arion was the first such agent empowered by and for the Lords of Order on Earth. But Chaos's partnership with a mortal, not to mention their sinking of Atlantis, represented a significant escalation of the conflict. And Arion's resulting death forced Order to reassess. Thus, they took a moment to observe the architect of all this chaos. Varl'jat… Soon to be known as Marduk.
7,586 years after the fall of Atlantis, came the rise of Babylonia. But ruling this new kingdom came with its challenges. Marduk found himself frustrated with his Babylonian generals and their pernicious independence of mind. "Guess who?"
Marduk turned to see Klarion walking out of a red portal. The Chaos Lord Klarion arrived, without invitation, but with an offer of help. Marduk's son, Nabu, argued fiercely against giving the Witch Boy free rein. But Marduk, ignoring his son's advice, was intrigued by Klarion's offer. The result… Klarion brought a Starro-Creature from Deep Space to Ancient Babylon.
Marduk was not prepared for the gifts Starro brought. Instantly, it became clear Starro was no solution to Marduk's problems, as the alien creature put the Babylonian army under its control, not Marduk's. As for Marduk's son Nabu, it was his fate to die, fighting the enemy his father had unintentionally raised. And his death, under these circumstances, left the Lords of Order intrigued.
The Babylonians believed Nabu to be a God of Wisdom. He was already, in his way, a Champion of Order, willing to defy his father, Marduk, Chaos' immortal mortal ally upon the Earth. What better candidate for Order's purpose? So the Lords of Order recruited Nabu's soul, now free of the limitations of his fragile mortal form.
Elevating it to a higher calling, they gave purpose to his once pointless death and revealed the dangers resulting from the Chaos of the Klarion-Marduk alliance. Gaining an oath of Nabu's fealty to Order, the Lords forged something new. Not simply an agent of Order on Earth, but a Lord of Order, created from the soul of mortal man and Nabu's helmet. The Helmet of Fate would act as the anchor for his spirit on the mortal plane.
The only thing required was a human host body, capable of channeling Nabu's mystic power. Such hosts were not always easy to come by. Yet, Nabu became the Lord of Order, known as Doctor Fate, who has for centuries defended this world from Chaos.
Roanoke Island, May 14, 03:20 EDT.
"We. Are. So. Modded."
Naruto looked over as Thirteen spoke looking at the damage. "Not if we can stop this new Lord of Chaos."
"Fixing this would take a lot more than bending a branch back into shape," Khalid said as he looked back at his mentor who spoke a spell to dry herself off and clean the debris off.
"Teg aremac ydaer! (Get Camera Ready!)" She walked over to look at everyone. "You know who I'm going to see. So you and Blood should go on a recruiting tour, too. (Sigh) We're gonna need all the help we can get." Stranger nodded and left with Jason as Zatanna then took a deep breath before speaking a spell. "Rehtaf, ediug ruo yenruoj hguorht S'etaf Yloh Hkna! (Father, guide our journey through Fate's Holy Ankh!)"
The Ankh portal covered the others as they disappeared.
Salem My 14, 03:22 EDT.
And reappeared in a large living room before Zatanna groaned as Naruto put her on a chair and then took off his right glove to put his hand on her neck.
"What are you doing?" Jesse asked Naruto who looked up.
"Using that spell takes a lot out of her, just helping her recover."
"Huh? That spell usually takes me to the stairs. I wonder why we wound up here?" Zatanna asked as Khalid looked at a portrait of a Caucasian woman.
"Aunt Inza?"
"Oh, that's why."
"And where is here, exactly?" Jesse asked before a gold lightning bolt cracked as Dr. Fate floated down.
"Nice entrance," Zatanna said as Naruto looked up.
"Daughter of Zatara, you invoke our ankh and invade our tower. Take these children and get out."
Hollywood, May 14, 00:23 PDT.
"Could you two go with them?"
A clone of Naruto's asked the two robots as the alarm went off. "There's extreme trouble out now… Full Leaguer trouble and I would feel better if you two went with them."
"Of course." Torpedo nodded as he had on a black cape with a whirlpool design on it Inferno had a matching one but with flames on it.
"Yes! Mission time."
Naruto smiled as he turned to Star Girl at that. "Be careful out there, Boss is dealing with a League-level alert on the East Coast that could spill here."
Salem May 14, 03:24 EDT.
"I can't leave. A new Chaos Lord threatens the Earth."
Zatanna said standing as Nabu nodded. "Yes. She calls herself Child. Do not waste time telling Fate what's already known."
"Then Fate knows we need his help."
"We are not inclined to intervene," Nabu said as Naruto walked up.
"Even if this Child destroys half the planet in the process? Or is this one of those bullshit things of balance like in that one space movie. Where the power like you and the Chaos Lords, would let the evil side win if/when Good had too much power to even things out for a while. Because if that's the case, I'm ripping that helmet off then fighting Child while letting you go unused for a time."
"I had the same thought," Zatanna spoke after her husband. "Two Chaos Lords at each other's throats sounded like a win. Right up until their conflict sank half of Roanoke Island. We can't wait for the outcome. We have to stop the fight itself."
"And you plan on doing that with these children?" Nabu asked, gesturing to her protégés.
"Yes, while you and Naruto confront Child and Klarion, my Sentinels can covertly strike from the shadows."
"Your "Sentinels" are not ready for this fight," Nabu said to Zatanna
"We so are."
"We've been training hard."
"We're ready for anything... more or less. Kind of."
The three-spoke up as Zatanna smiled. "They'll do great, Nabu. You just watch."
"Let us test that premise," Nabu said before creating a portal under each and having them fall in.
Thirteen finds herself in a dark space and quickly realizes she is expected to prove herself. Behind her, a puppet theater lights up. As she approaches it, a puppet of Blue Beetle appears, telling her she doesn't need to prove anything to him, her puppet boyfriend. He is soon joined by puppets of Zatanna and Beast Boy, her puppet mentor and puppet idol, respectively.
Traci demands to know who is controlling them and for what purpose; they tell her they want to cheer her up. But Traci hears a voice, whispering darkly. Beetle tells her that the whispers are nothing, but the whispers respond; they are nothing, just like Traci. Traci realizes this is a test of her insecurities. Beetle tells her she has nothing to be insecure about, and that all her friends think she is terrific.
The whispers tell her they don't trust her to have their backs. Beetle tells her that her powers are cool. The whispers note she still hasn't mastered them. Beast Boy reminds her he asked her to join the Outsiders. The whispers say he was relieved when she said no. Zatanna talks about taking her on as a protégé.
The whispers say she has then taken on Khalid and Mary to replace her. Traci shouts for the voice to stop, and storms behind the puppet theater to find who is behind it, only to find herself shrunk down on the theater stage. The puppets loom over her, and for the first time, Traci sees the puppeteer and the source of the whispers; herself.
The puppeteer calls Traci a fraud and tells her she is not ready for this fight, then has the Beetle puppet slap her to the ground.
Khalid stands in a shallow pool being fed by two waterfalls. Looking down he sees his reflection but wearing hospital scrubs, not his street clothes. The reflection asks what he is doing, he should be in the hospital, helping people. Khalid rebuts that he is helping people, as a hero, with a different method. His method is magic, notes his mother, who emerges from one of the waterfalls.
She questions his Muslim faith, saying the practice of magic is incompatible with Islam, and that a good Muslim would obey his mother. Khalid objects, he uses magic as a tool to do good, which is what Islam teaches him to do, and she is using religion to try to control him. Jane says she wants a better, safer life for him, but his father emerges from the other waterfall to interject.
Muhammed says that Khalid must honor his heritage, even if it means giving up medical school. Khalid insists he is not giving up medicine, and that he can do both. The argument continues, and with each interjection from Jane, Muhammed, Khalid, and his reflection, the water level rises. Just before the water rises above their heads, the reflection tells Khalid that they are drowning in his doubts and that he is not ready for this fight.
The water rises, and Khalid and his reflection begin to drown.
Jesse finds herself in a subway when a younger version of herself demands she "say it". Jesse insists they do not say that anymore, but hears the girl crying for help, and turns to see her with a foot stuck on the rail track with a train incoming. Jesse uses ley lines to summon the speed of Mercury, and races to pull the girl out of harm's way.
The girl is angry, as that wasn't the right way to save her. A pillar falls and the girl, now trapped, calls for help once more. Jesse summons the strength of Hercules to lift the pillar, but once again the girl is unhappy. Jesse says she promised not to say it again, so the girl decides she will: she calls out Shazam and, in a flash of lightning, becomes a young adult woman in a costume that mirrors that of Captain and Mary Marvel's, albeit white instead of red.
Jesse summons the stamina of Atlas just as Caster begins to attack her. Between punches, Caster berates her, calling her no hero and questioning her power. Caster hurls Jesse away, telling her she is afraid to be herself and lacks the imagination to be something new; that without her, Jesse is not ready for this fight.
In the sitting room, Zatanna looks saddened before Naruto puts his hand on her shoulder. "Trust them, they had you as a teacher."
Traci continues to be berated by the puppeteer, who taunts her for her bad luck magic, which is as likely to curse friends as enemies, before striking her once more. Next, her urban magic is questioned; what if the fight isn't in a city? Another hit sends Traci flying. The puppeteer tells her she is not ready and knocks Traci to the ground once again.
Leroy crawls onto Traci's shoulder, licks her, and winks at her. Traci thanks him, and rises once more. Defiant, Traci tells the puppeteer that she lives with her insecurities every day, but she is not a quitter. She didn't need to join the Outsiders, she was already on the Team. She is afraid but brave enough to ask for help.
She trains and works to make herself better. She doesn't let failure stop her, at least not for long. With each statement, the puppets fall apart, and the puppeteer finds herself small, resting in the palm of Traci's hand. Traci drops the puppeteer version of herself and declares that she is ready, as a portal forms beneath her feet.
Khalid, his parents, and his reflection struggle in the water, until Khalid hears the Adhan, the Islamic call to prayer, and the water recedes. Khalid finds peace with himself, and his reflection, which merges with him. Khalid tells his parents that he is a man of faith, science, and mysticism. He will find his way forward on a path built by those who came before him, as a doctor and a sorcerer.
He calls magic a science of its own, a tool from God to serve good. He embraces his parents until they vanish, and he declares himself ready. A portal forms beneath his feet.
Caster holds Jesse against a wall by the throat. She tells her that she is beautiful, powerful, and better than anyone; why doesn't Jesse want it? She is interrupted by a tug on her sleeve, and she turns to a young Billy Batson. Billy reminds her why she gave up the power; that she had given up her life as Jesse to be Caster full-time.
And that Billy and Freddy had confronted her, and she had agreed that it wasn't right, and gave up the power, cold turkey. Caster releases Jesse and tells her that she is nothing without her. Jesse disagrees, she had to stop but that doesn't mean she can't be a hero. she can still be a sorceress without abandoning who she is. Jesse absorbs Caster, and with a word of encouragement from Billy, declares that she is ready, and a portal forms beneath her.
Back in the room, Zatanna smiled as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Ha! See? There's a reason why I chose each one of them. They can handle what's coming."
"Is this true? Are you ready to enter a battle that could easily cost you your lives?" Nabu asked the three who nodded before speaking after each other.
"I am."
"Ready."
"Been there, done that."
"Perhaps they are ready. Still, Fate has neither need nor use for them or you, as we have no intention of intervening so long as Chaos fights Chaos." Nabu spoke and turned around.
(Nabu's Mindscape.)
"And thus, a single champion was raised by Order to battle Chaos in all its forms." Nabu finished telling Zatara his origins.
"Nabu, why do you tell me what I already know?" He asked for the helmet.
"So that you may understand why there is, as yet, no need for us to act. Let the Chaos Lords fight, until even the victor has been weakened by battle. Fate will step forward to bring order in the end, as we have done for millennia."
"Nabu, how can you miss the point of your own story?" Zatara asked, hands behind his back. "You view Fate as a single champion, a lone warrior, capable of triumphing over any opposition. But this has never been true, nor was it your masters' intent. The Lords of Order planned for Doctor Fate's formation to require two champions, Nabu and Fate's host." Zatara said before projections of all the people Nabu used from Kent to Naruto appeared under the helmet.
"Both are equally important. For if the host fails, so falls Fate. And for Fate to succeed, Nabu must draw on his host's diverse strengths. Yet every host, every person, finds their strength in their way." Zatara continued using an ankh to show the three kids. "Look at these three children, whom you tested this day, finding strength through mentors, family, and faith."
Zatara then turned back to the helmet. "Honestly, do you think I would have survived these ten years as your host and prisoner, without my faith in a higher power?" He asked before making the sign of the cross as a white cross formed behind him and a gold ankh behind Nabu as he started praying the Lord's Prayer. "Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come."
"Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen." He then opened his eyes to stare at Nabu as his body formed the helmet as it floated down. "And the victories you so proudly cite, would they have come without allies such as the League, or the Lords of Order themselves?"
"You view cooperation as Chaos. But it is only in the combined strengths of all these individuals, in the unity of the disparate, that Order may truly rise out of Chaos. You must know this on some level, Or why else would you have allowed Kent Nelson to push you into joining the Justice Society, Or allowed me to keep you in the Justice League? Great Nabu, step back from the precipice of your arrogance."
"And heed the words of those who seek only to aid your cause, lest you fall victim to Chaos, as you did in your natural life so many years ago. Start by listening to my daughter."
(Outside Mindscape.)
"And the winner, who would be the strongest?" Naruto asked, walking up. "You and the other Lords of Order would be ready to fight and defend people if/when they attack? If you want that on your conscience so be it but I won't stand by…" Naruto trailed off as there was a knock before they saw Klarion via portal knocking and asking for help.
Only for Child to show up and kill Teekl having Klarion disappear as they looked on in shock.
To Be Continued.
A/N: Thanks for reading and let me know of any mistakes.
Chaos-PSD.
The poll is rather close so I will leave it up for one full rotation of stories then take it down a day or two later in case it still is close to let one get higher so be sure to vote if you haven't!
I hope you all have a safe and Happy New Year!
Next to be updated will be Shinobi on Board.
Nothing else to say.
Talk To You Later,
Lone Wolf Out.🐺