Enchantress anxiously paced the hall at the far end of the building. The septagram was behind her, like the one I'd seen in June's bathroom, mystically floating off the ground, converting the entirety of the back wall. It looked like a mechanical bonfire with rows of gears that brought to mind a hungry, clamorous grinder.

"Okay, so tell me," Harley said as quietly as she was capable of being. "Am I dreaming that thing, or does everyone else see all that trippy magic stuff? I mean, I'm off my meds, so you can't go by me."

"Hell yeah, that's real," Boomer said. "It's like I'm flashing back to my college days, only I was never that high."

"None of it is making any sense," Harley agreed. "And that's coming from me."

Deadshot turned to me. "C'mon, Miss," Lawton said as he pointed to Enchantress, swaying to the music only she coul hear. "It's your friend over there, right? Give her a big hug and tell her to stop this garbage."

I disagreed. "We need to follow the plan we already have. We draw the big one out, and then get my guys to detonate the bomb under him."

"Yeah, fine, but where is the big guy?'

Enchantress was too busy powering the machine to pay attention as we moved deeper into the room, searching for Incubus.

Then she spoke. "Colonel Flag is that you?" she said, her voice a mockery of June's.

Deadshot grabbed Harley's arm before she could do something stupid, and pulled her close to him. "Stay with me and stay quiet."

"Why are you here?" Enchantress said,even though she couldn't see us. "Is it because the soldier led you here? For Waller? But boys-and I include you too, Harley and Chapman- why do you serve those who cage you? I am your ally, and I know what you want. Exactly what you want."

Wind and white light suddenly exploded in the room.

We were lost in timeless white space, and we were overwhelmed by it.

I was surrounded by the white. I felt my arm being tugged. I looked up and saw Kowalski.

He looked down, and then glanced up at me through his long black lashes, his chocolate eyes scorching.

His eyes would always be my downfall. He'd have drowned me effortless by sight. Kowalski stared at me for a moment too long. He leaned back motionlessly against the sand, like a statue.

I was in danger of being distracted by his livid, glorious face. It was like trying to stare down a destroying angel.

His face and smooth calm of his voice was so distracting, I didn't realise we were sitting on a sunny beach, the water lapping at our feet.

Suddenly, a harsh voice broke the serentiy.

"I can't change what I did, and neither can you!"

Thw whiteness disolved, replaced by harsh reality.

"What the hell happened? Harley asked. The others all looked like they were all coming out of the same trance.

Diablo knew better, though. He had broken free on his own. He accepted the truth of what he was, and he never tried to hide from it. "It's not real!" he shouted. "No matter how good it felt, you don't want it. We shouldn't have it."

Harley crouched, her face hidden behind her hands. "Speak for yourself, Torchy. You shoulda seen my place. It coulda been the life."

"No," Diablo said. "Whatever you saw belonged to another. Before your path changed. Even if you were to change, and fully embrace it, that way is gone. You would have to build a different road." He stepped from the shadows.

"He's right. It's not real." Flag said sombrely.

The others joined Diablo. I saw Enchantress stare at us, intrigued that her illusion had been so easily pierced.

"How long have you been able to see, Fire Man?"

"My whole life," Diablo said. "Look, lady, they're with me. You can't have them. These are my people right here."

Enchantress laughed and smiled at him. "But it is our time. The sun is setting and the magic arises. The meta-humans are a sign of change, my friend."

Diablo stepped closer, not at all intimidated by her power. "I'm not your friend, I know who you are, and like me, you're not supposed to be here."

Enchantress frowned at his insolence. "Stop talking." She ordered. "This should be simple. Are we friends, or are we foes? And remember, we are not the ones who caged you."

I stared. She was the face of the enemy and there was no way we would ever stand side by side.

Deadshot scoffed. "I'm a bad guy, yeah, but lady, you want to destroy the world," he said. "You are evil."

The others stood beside him. They were in this together.

Enchantress glanced up to the window. There was a glowing light in the distance. "Brother, you were right. The pets won't turn on their masters. So go ahead. Break their necks, but try not to disturb me. The machine requires my full attention now." She turned back to finish working on her machine as Incubus appeared.

"You do as you need to, sister. I will destroy our enemies."

"You are dear, brother," she replied, and she smiled. "Have fun."

He marched to the colonade, his magic armour fanning like a cobra hood. "I've been waiting for this for so very long." His eyes glowed. A tentacle shot from his hands and slammed into the stone column, shattering it.

Flag pushed me behind him, and raised his rifle.

I hit my comm and screamed into it. "GQ. You in position? GQ, copy?"

I waited, but heard nothing.

Deadshot looked at me and shrugged. "Your plan sucks. Just saying it."

"Guys," Harley shouted. "The big kahuna's doing it again. Just letting you know."

Incubus was powering up. He prepared to fire another tendril, but then decided not to. He was powerful enough that the didn't need mystical incantations to destroy us. What he wanted now was a little physical exercise.

Enchantress stepped back and admired her machine. Giant black gears snapped into place, increasing the energy that fed the machine.

The machine opened its maw and swallowed its black smoke. Its gears kept turning and grinding and convulsing. Then, magical energy erupted from the machine and blew an outsized hole through the station roof.

"Brother, it has begun." She cried. "This world will again be ours."

Bolts of lightning crackled through the shattered roof, angled toward the ring of street debris orbiting the station. We were now in the eye of a super storm.

Enchantress's machine was a long range weapon system, powered not by electricity, but by magic that bad been forgotten a millennia ago. Magic the modern would no longer combat.

"Trig, you up?" GQ said through the comm.

"Yeah, we're inside. You in position?' I replied.

"Negative," GQ answered, "They're down here. Only a few of us guys left, I sent them out."

"Okay, but you gotta get to the southeast corner. We'll drive him to you. Make it happen."

"You got it, Trig. Take care."

"Yeah, my thoughts are with you. Hell, the thoughts of everyone here are with you." I slipped my comm back into its case. This is happening now. If it works, it'll soon be over. If he wanted to save the world, he didn't have any other choice. This was exactly what he had signed up for.

I was in pain. My unit was dead and nobody could bring them back. They'd never know if I tried to save the world or condemned it to its own slow, painful death. It wasn't on them. It was on me. My mother and Kowalski would never know what I did, and they'd never care-but I knew they'd want me to prove to myself that I wasn't just a hired gun.

And Diablo looked to me like he felt the same way.

Flag pointed to the corner behind Incubus. "We gotta get him in that corner, that's where the bomb will be."

"I'll do it, I'll get him there."

"Think it through." Deadshot shouted.

Diablo looked at Deadshot and nodded. "Thanks, brother, I got this. Let me show you what I really am." He stepped into the light and walked up behind Incubus. "Hey, fool. You lookin' for me? Well I'm over here."

Incubus turned to face him. "You are right, burning man," he said." Let's do this."

Diablo's arm shot out and whipped a blast of fire into Incubus's face.

Deadshot and Flag stood back, staring at Diablo.

"That the best you have?" Incubus said, shrugging it off, grinning at his opponent. His armour rippled and dispersed the heat. "You are trying to fight a god, but there is no way you can survive, let alone be victorious." Incubus suddenly lunged and slammed Diablo into the station wall.

Our most powerful warrior was downed even before he could throw the first punch.

"Well," Harley said, looking lost and frightened. "No way that went well."

Incubus turned to us, and gestured for them to come at him. He had more toys which to play, and he couldn't wait. The battle was just beginning.

More than four thousand years ago, Incubus stood side by side with his sister against vast armies of trained warriors who swore they would destroy the two gods. Those warriors are now dead, while brother and sister stood strong, and more powerful than ever.

Now, as then, Incubus had to laugh at the pitiful humans who thought they would succeed where thousands before them had failed.

We had no idea what we were fighting. Gods were meant the rule, and if he had to destroy all that challenged him to get those few who lived to serve his needs, he would.

He was enjoying watching us run like mice in a maze, somehow believing he were the dominant species on Earth.

Diablo, having regained his senses, attacked with a geyser of flame while Harley fired her guns. As soon as she had used up one mag, she slammed in another and kept up the attack. Incubus shrugged off these attacks.

Katana was ready to fight.

"Slice and dice!" Deadshot shouted to her, laughing.

Crouching next to her, Boomer launched his boomerangs at Incubus. There were two detonations as they slammed into his face and exploded.

Incubus stumbled back and roared, but quickly shook off the momentary pain and attacked again.

Flag pushed me back behind a pillar, and aimed at Incubus, but he didn't pull the trigger.

Incubus saw Boomer about to launch another explosive 'rang at him. He stepped back, breathe deeply and concentrated, forming a smoky tendril

But Katana jumped at the giant and brought her sword down hard on his arm, slicing off his hand at the wrist. He fell back as his half-formed tendril shook and disappeared, smoky wisps dissipating into the air.

He launched yet another tendril at Katana. He held out his bloodied wrist, pain etched across his face. He closed his eyes and screamed as the shattered stump of bone and flesh seemed to glow and extend, building a new forearm. Regeneration a new wrist. A new hand.

As he flexed his fingers, pleased to see he could still control them, Incubus turned to Deadshot and smiled. "The woman did that to me, but you commanded her," he roared. "So you will die first, then I will take my time and kill her, too. It will be a wonderful, agonising death. Then, when you are all dead, the rest of humanity, with no one left to fight for them, will follow." The giant lunged for Deadshot, and slammed him in the chest. Lawton helplessly skidded across the floor and crashed into a wall. Incubus stalked toward him, his hands beginning to glow again with renewed energy.

Suddenly, Harley jumped onto his back, and rode him like a bunkin' bronco. Her finger clawed into his neck as she tried to strangle him. "Have fun trying to breathe, gruesome."

He stood up and shrugged her off. Then he picked her up by her head and casually flipped her across the tracks. "I'll come back for you soon enough, little girl," he said. "I have priorities, and you are low on the list."

Boomerang tried to pull Deadshot to safety. Incubus shook his head, then grabbed the Aussie and held him high so he could look the man in his eyes.

"Do you really want to fight me before I've slaughtered Flag? If so, I will be more than happy to oblige." He tossed him off the platform, and watched him bounce onto the tracks. He turned again to Deadshot, still on the ground, weak and leaning against the station column. His face was smeared with blood, and it looked as if he'd been dead for at least a week. Weak as he was, however, he raised his arms and aimed his wrist magnums, already set to full auto.

Incubus grinned and leapt. "When are you humans ever going to learn?"

"Never," Deadshot cried. Suddenly, his emergency glocks appeared in his hands and he fired all four weapons into Incubus's face. The bullets vaporized with bright flares as they tried to penetrate his armour.

Incubus watched them disappear and again laughed at his target. "And this is why your worthless race will soon be extinct."

Sprawled on the ground, Deadshot scanned the station, searching for a place to hide until he could recover. He was looking at a maintenance door about twenty yards south. He grabbed a fallen drainpipe and pulled himself up to his feet.

Leaning against the station wall for support, Deadshot slowly took a step. Then another…and another. He cried out and fell back against the wall, took several breaths, then started again. He let go of the wall, and picked up his pace. He made it to the door, and reached to open it.

"You have to know you can't escape me," Incubus towered over him. "But I did enjoy watching your efforts." The god's hands glowed with rippling energy and he reached for Deadshot.

Then a voice came from behind the giant. "Hey, you. Over there! Leave him alone." Diablo stood tall, arms spread wide, hands open, fingers splayed. Then he floated up from the ground, levitating as if he was some kind of deity, too.

Incubus stared.

"I said, get away from him." Diablo was raging, nearly out of control. All his years of anger and pain boiled out of him and formed into a huge fiery skeleton, at least as tall as Incubus. Without another thought, he lunged for the god and slammed him away.

"They are my friends," he shouted as he whipped a jet-engine blast of fire into Incubus's face. "I will not let you harm them."

Incubus shrugged it off. His iridescent armour rippled as it dispersed Diablo's attack. He unleashed another tendril, which struck Diablo, blasting him back across the train station. But Diablo stood, surrounded by a huge skeleton of fire that formed around him.

Harley Quinn stared at the giant and laughed. "Way to go, we got us a mega Diablo!"

We all stared as Diablo lunged at Incubus again, and thrust his fiery hands into Incubus's face, exploding the false god's flesh. Again and again Diablo slammed his burning fist into Incubus.

"We're running out of time. Drive him into the corner!" I shouted. "Do it now!"

Diablo leapt at Incubus, backing him toward the corner. But the god fought back, resisting.

Harley stared at the burning giant, then rubbed her eyes to clear away what was obviously a fever dream. She opened them again, nothing had changed. Diablo and Incubus were fighting a war normal humans could never hope to understand.

"Now I get it," she said. "Why he doesn't let himself get angry."

Boomer rushed back to Deadshot's side and pulled him to safety. Lawton looked at him and laughed.

"See, if you're nice to people, they'll turn into fire skeletons and fight giant glowing man' gods."

Boomer grinned back at him. "Right. Point taken."

Showing fear, Incubus held up his arms to block Diablo's repeated attacks. His attempts to counter Diablo's blows were clumsy, showing that he had never really faced anyone who he had actually had to fight. He had always ordered others to do whatever he needed done.

Diablo kept hitting him. Again and again, burning though his armour, then digging his fingers into its metal, forcing a gap just large enough to shove his fist inside and ignite the so-called god from within.

During it all, Diablo never stopped screaming.

"Trig," My comm hashed. "Standing by, I'm in position."

Incubus howled in pain. His arms failed wildly, hammering at his assailant, desperate to keep him from forcing even more fire under his armour.

Diablo had melted its out layers and was now burning into Incubus's flesh.

"GQ's in place," I shouted. "Drive him into the corner."

Diablo allowed himself a rare smile as he shouldered Incubus toward the corner. "Our god burns, Mrs. Colonel," he said. "And I am ready." Then success lessened his rage, and his power diminished with it.

Deadshot called out to me. "D's losing steam. Now would be a good time."

"No, I need him to be directly over the bomb. We can't take the chance that hell survive. Diablo, I know you're weakening, but I need you to keep pushing. Just a few more inches, man. You can do it." I yelled.

Bellowing, Diablo again lunged for the giant. The both tumbled back, into the corner, directly over the Seal and his explosives.

"Stand by GQ, almost," I said. "Almost…"

Diablo's fires were slowly fading, but he didn't back down. Realization appeared on Incubus's face, and the god fought back furiously to escape.

"Diablo, get out of there, it's time to ankle," Flag said.

"GQ, on my order!" I bellowed into the comm.

Diablo's fire skeleton dissipated, yet he refused to let go.

"I said, get outta there," Flag shouted. "Get clear!"

"I can't let him go." Diablo was still caged in flame as the two combatants returned to their normal sizes. "I'm losing strength, man." He looked at me. "Blow the bomb. Do it now."

Harley looked to me. "He's going to die saving us?"

"Not just us. The world." I replied.

Everyone was in place. There could be no more delays. Reluctanly, I spoke into my comm. "GQ. Diablo. The world owes you both."

Time had run out.

"GQ," I said. "Now."

"Everybody down!" Flag shouted, and we ducked behind a column. Flag put his arm over my head, and I huddled close to him, bracing.

Directly below Diablo and Incubus, the platform floor erupted in a succession of massive underground explosions, geysering brick and water, obliterating the main tunnel and the other passageways connected to it. Flames crawled up the walls then hung from the tiled ceiling. The fire was everywhere.

There was a ball of fire, as Incubus's mortal form shattered into an un-countable number of pieces, like soft chunks of amber.

We were lost in the horror.

GQ was gone. The Seal had sacrificed himself, which was what we had been trained to do. GQ was a hero, and whole world would know that. But Croc and Diablo-men I once thought they were barbaric murderers-had also died. Died saving the lives of all his friends. Perhaps saving the planet itself.

Deadshot reached out and put a hand on my shoulder. "You had no choice."

"I know. It doesn't make it easier. We lost three good men."

"Three damned good men." Flag agreed, his eyes red-rimmed. GQ was his closest friend.

Deadshot nodded. "The best."

Katana saw Incubus's head lying alone and looking lost on the station floor, a faint glimmer of life somehow still sparking in his eyes. He was looking up at her, his fight not yet done.

She stared at the head, fractured and bloody, then plunged her sword into the former god. He howled, writhing, as it painfully wrenched free his soul.

The Soultaker was satifsied.

It was over.