Severing of Bonds
I don't own any properties in this story.
"I'll cut to it," said Batman as he looked at the assembled Robin, Kaldur, Red Arrow, and Red Tornado, "Are we sure there is a mole in the team?"
"I'm convinced that there is none," said Kaldur as he stepped forward, "When Sportsmaster claimed to have an inside source, he was merely sowing descent."
"His intel could've come from comparing notes with the other villains working for the Injustice League," said Robin with a smile.
"I wouldn't count it," said Death as she appeared in a corner with a drink in her hand, surprising everyone, "Don't mind me. I'm just trying to get away from all the Death costumes everyone's wearing. Continue."
"Well, I'm not convinced," said Red Arrow, "You two and Kid Flash are above suspicion. But I know Artemis isn't shooting straight. For starters, she isn't Green Arrow's niece."
"Obviously," said Death as everyone looked at her, "I was there when her parents and their siblings were born. Oliver isn't one of them."
"Artemis's relations may make her suspect," said Batman as he stood next to his sidekick, "But she's still entitled to a secret identity. I'm more concerned about Superboy and Moon Knight. We still don't know what Cadmus programed into him and while we did clear Moon Knight earlier, given the fact that she went behind the League's back as well as the recent psych evaluation that Black Canary did, we can't rule her out either."
"No," said Death quickly, "Naruto would never do anything like that."
"But even you can't be sure," said Red Tornado, "From what Reaper told us, you can no longer see Moon Knight or influence her by keeping her alive."
"That was you?!" exclaimed Robin as he jumped to his feet.
Death sighed and looked off to the side.
"When you went into Naruto's core memories with Reaper, you saw one where he was on a playground in the middle of the rain with a young girl following him around with an umbrella, correct?" asked Death.
"Yes, we did," said Kaldur.
"Once every hundred years, I take a mortal form so I can see how my actions affect the world," said Death before she took a sip of her drink.
"You were the girl following Moon Knight that day," said Batman once he connected the dots.
"Wait!" exclaimed Robin in shock, "You're that Meena Dhawan?"
"I had originally intended to use that one day to try and cheer him up but he was so depressed that I decided to remain with him," explained Death, "I honestly don't think that he ever recovered from his parents dying. Even after that, he had to deal with his foster father committing suicide and his foster mother dealing with Alzheimer's then his foster grandfather being gunned down."
"So, Rio's mentally unstable is what you're saying," said Kaldur.
"I fixed what I could after you all got rid of Savitar from inside of him but it's impossible to tell," said Death, "That's why I had my brother watch over him to keep an eye on how he's doing."
"Destruction has told us that there are times when Moon Knight vanishes and he doesn't see her for several hours," said Red Tornado.
"I'm not surprised," said Death, "Naruto was always very good at not being noticed. Now that he knows magic, he's even better at it. He has a right to privacy but even going this far is concerning for me. I'll assign Reaper to follow Naruto. Now, I need to go have a talk with one of my other brothers. But, please don't reveal any of this to Naruto. I just want him to enjoy the rest of his life without getting hung up on me."
Death vanished, surprising everyone before they looked at each other.
Artemis and Zatanna rode motorcycles through the streets of Manhattan but Zatanna stopped when a car passed them. Spinning around, she followed the car out to Brooklyn and to a repair yard. Rio got out of the car as Zatanna turned off her bike and pulled off her helmet.
"Rio, hold up!" said Zatanna as she followed her girlfriend into the yard, "I just want to talk!"
"After what happened with the Rider?" scoffed Rio as she checked the parts on some shelves, "Fat chance."
"We were just worried about you," argued Zatanna with a sigh.
"You don't have to be," said Rio as she grabbed a pressure gauge and went over to her car, "I've made my peace with all of you and I just want to be on my own for a while."
"So, this is where you've been hiding," said Artemis as she entered the yard.
"I work here," said Rio as she checked the tire pressure of her car, "Besides, you two need to get out of here. I'm just here to make sure we're stocked up and to fix the stabilizer on my car."
"You think you're going to come back to the team?" asked Artemis.
"Don't know," said Rio as she put her car in neutral then pushed it onto a lift, "And could you tell Destruction to stop following me?"
Artemis and Zatanna got on their bikes after a moment then rode off.
"I'm sorry, Zatanna," whispered Rio remorsefully before smoke started coming off her flesh.
(An Hour Later)
Artemis kicked Harm against the fence of the backyard and the man gritted his teeth. A hand covered by a leather glove broke through the fence next to Harm's head and pulled him through by the shoulder. Landing in the middle of the street, Harm got up then looked down up the street just as a flaming chain wrapped around his waist.
"No, please!" begged Harm before the chain was pulled off him, turning him into ash as he screamed.
Artemis and Zatanna stared at the scorch mark that had been Harm while Greta looked on in horror. A person stepped into view, revealing it was a girl by how their body looked but what shocked them most was the girl's flaming skull.
"Another Ghost Rider?" asked Artemis in disbelief.
Ghost Rider turned to them and stared right at Greta. Holding up a small box, Ghost Rider said something in a language neither of the two living girls understood before the top opened with a light coming out of it. Greta yelped as she was dragged forward against her will.
Artemis saw this and fired an arrow at Ghost Rider but it was caught out of midair by the girl dressed like Batman that had attacked the Cave with the Suicide Squad.
"Xob, ylf otni ym dnah!" called out Zatanna as she held her hand out toward Ghost Rider.
The box glowed for a moment before the light stopped. Surprised that her spell didn't work, Zatanna and Artemis could only watch in horror as Greta looked to them for help before she was sucked into the box. The top of the box closed as the Rider handed the box to the girl next to him then wagged a finger at Artemis and Zatanna before getting into a car with the girl and they drove off.
(Ten Minutes Later)
Recognized: Artemis B07, Zatanna Zatara B08
"We've got a problem," said Artemis as they hurried up to Batman, Red Tornado, Kaldur, and Robin, "There's another Ghost Rider."
"What?" asked Kaldur in surprise.
"And this one's a girl," added Zatanna.
"Great," said Robin in annoyance.
"I'll talk to Constantine and see if he can find out a way to track it," said Batman, "Until then, none of you are to go after the Rider."
Rio shut of the ignition of her car the lowered the bed it was on. Climbing in the driver's seat, Rio took a deep breath.
"You know, I told you to head back after we were done," said Naruto to the passenger in the shadows of her car before sighing, "Although, it's not like you even understand a word that I'm saying."
Starting up her car, Rio pulled out of the yard and headed home.
(Five Days Later)
Rio laughed with Meena as a nurse checked the equipment while Krypto sat in a corner.
"So, you haven't talked to your friends for weeks?" asked Meena in concern.
"I'm just taking some time off," assured Rio, "Besides, this means that I have more time to spend with you."
"But they're your friends," said Meena.
Sighing, Rio hung her head then looked up at Meena.
"Sometimes, you just grow apart from your friends," explained Naruto, "Sometimes, a time comes when you just can't be friends anymore."
Just as the nurse was about to change the IV bag, she vanished in a flash, causing Rio to stand up and Krypto to start growling.
"Naruto, what's going on?" questioned Meena.
Rio stuck her head out the door and saw that the entire floor was deserted. Pulling out her phone, Rio quickly dialed a number, hoping the people on the other end would pick up.
"It's me," said Rio as the people on the other line picked up, "All the adults have vanished from this hospital. Get to my location as quick as you can."
Hanging up, Rio took Meena's hand and placed her phone in it.
"Keep this with you," said Rio as she hurried to a Boom Tube, "Krypto, make sure she's safe!"
"What's going on?!" exclaimed Rio as she entered the cave
"We don't know," said Robin as he turned to her, "Batman and the other adults just disappeared."
"This is bad," said Rio as she ran her hands through her hair, "Meena's heart condition is getting worse and Cyborg can only do so much to help her."
"What are we going to do?" asked Megan.
"Right now, we need to make sure all the children are safe," said Kaldur as he looked at Wally and Superboy, "Start by setting up a refugee center at the high school. Once the children are safe, we can start figuring out where all the adults are."
"Got it," said Wally as he and Connor hurried out of the cave, Artemis and Megan following close behind to help.
"Start by seeing if you can contact any of the adult heroes," said Kaldur to Robin and Zatanna.
"Already ahead of you," said Rio as she went through the computer while holding a seal off to the side.
"I get the computer but what are you doing with the seal?" asked Zatanna as they approached.
"I'm trying to reach John or any other member of the JLD besides you," explained Rio before she grunted and collapsed.
"Rio!" exclaimed Robin as they all hurried over to her with Kaldur helping her to her feet, "Are you okay?"
"I… don't know," she said cautiously, "I just blacked out for some reason."
Pushing Kaldur away, Rio stumbled down the hall and into a bathroom. Looking into the mirror, Rio saw her reflection had flaming eyes as the girl in the bat costume fell from the ceiling with Secret, who had lifeless eyes, coming up out of the floor.
"Look," said Rio as she stared at her reflection, who wasn't copying her moves, "I'm a little busy with some things right now. You three are going to have to hold on before we do something. That time is coming close. I can feel it."
Secret and the girl vanished into the shadows as Rio's reflection began to copy her moves again.
Death stood in a library inside the Void as Reaper appeared in a seat by the fireplace.
"Naruto's been talking to those people that the Rider has been with," said Reaper.
"Why would Naruto do something like that?" asked Death to herself aloud.
"Mistress, we may have to face the fact that Naruto has been working with Ghost Rider," stated Reaper seriously.
"I can't believe that, Sasuke," said Death as she shook her head while looking out a window at the endless amount of sand that stretched to the horizon, "I just can't. And please remove that ridiculous mask."
"This isn't the same Naruto that either of know anymore," said Sasuke after removing his mask, "You clearly hurt him a lot more than you realized. He probably wouldn't have turned out like this if you had just left him alone in that park."
"That's exactly it," said Destiny as he appeared in the chair opposite of Reaper.
"What do you want?" questioned Death as she continued staring out the window.
"I write the destiny for every living thing, that includes possible timelines," said Destiny as he pulled out his book, "If you had left him in that park, he would've gotten over his parents dying a week later."
Death held her head as images of that timeline came into her head. Crying heavily, Death fell to her knees and sobbed loudly. Sasuke grabbed pulled out one of his shotguns and pointed it right at Destiny's face.
"You know that's not going to work so why do you even bother trying?" asked Destiny.
"At least you'll leave us alone," said Sasuke as he pulled the trigger, causing Destiny to be turned to atoms.
Walking back over to Death, he knelt down next to her and let her cry into his shoulder.
Rio watched as Zatanna and Robin tried to contact any of the adult heroes when Kaldur came up behind her.
"Something on your mind?" he asked.
"What's happening to everyone," said Rio with suspicion, "I'm technically 25 years old but I'm still here. The spell that was cast affects everyone ages 18 and over so why am I not with the adults?"
"That does sound suspicious," said Kaldur, "Have you ever considered that you were de-aged when you were sent here from your world?"
"Despite what you would think, there's no magic that can do that other than the Fountain of Youth but that thing's been lost for centuries," explained Rio, "Not even John has been able to find it."
"So, you're saying that something forced you to de-age other than the Fountain of Youth," stated Kaldur.
"Exactly," said Rio as a goblet appeared in her hand, "There are only two people that I know of that can do that and one of them is someone we're all familiar with."
Taking a sip from her goblet, Rio went further into the cave when her phone went off. Pulling it out, she glanced at it, seeing the message on it.
Stable for now. Needs proper medical attention soon.
Quickly texting back a response, Rio headed into Wally's trophy room and stared at the Helmet of Fate. Taking a deep breath, she drank heavily from the goblet before it disappeared. Looking over her shoulder, Rio tapped her foot while feeling an enormous amount of guild for what she was about to do. Picking up the Helmet, she held it in her hands before raising it over her head.
"What are you doing?" asked Kid Flash as he entered the room.
Rio dropped the Helmet in surprise then scrambled to pick it up.
"You really thinking about putting that thing on again?" questioned Kid Flash.
"I just don't know if Zatanna or I have the power to stop this," said Rio as she looked in the helmet's eyes before putting it back on the shelf, "If it comes to it, I don't know if I'll be able to keep myself in control."
"What are you saying?" asked Kid Flash confidently, "You put the helmet on twice before and you got out okay."
"That's not it," said Rio as she shook her head in shame, "I'm worried about Zatanna. It's almost the anniversary of her mother's death and I just don't want her to go through anymore pain. But to stop what's happening, I may just have to do that very thing."
"You really do care about her, don't you?" asked Kid Flash.
"I care about all my friends," said Naruto with a smirk, "But Zatanna… she's the first person since Meena that makes me want to take a backseat and enjoy life."
Kid Flash thought back to what Death had told them on Halloween and swallowed the lump in his throat. Rio, meanwhile held up her hand, seeing it become transparent before solidifying again.
"You're still suffering from Speed Sickness?" asked Kid Flash in surprise.
"Like I said before, the only way to fix this is to get my speed back," said Naruto with a sad smile, "But that's not going to happen."
"Why not?" asked Kid Flash.
"Because, I don't want it to happen," said Rio with a sad smile, "It's like when someone comes to terms with their cancer diagnosis. They accept it and just try to live out the rest of their lives as happily as they could. I've finally accepted that I'm probably never going to live beyond a year on this Earth. I just want to spend as much time with Zatanna as I can before it's over."
Hearing the sound of someone clearing their throat, Rio and Kid Flash looked toward the door to see Zatanna leaning against it.
"I-I'm ready to try my father's spell," said Zatanna nervously.
They followed Zatanna out of the room and into the main room where the rest of the team was gathered. Rio gave Zatanna a kiss before the magician walked up to a hologram of the Earth and raised her wand.
"Etacol retnecipe fo yrecros!" she declared with both confidence and timidity.
The hologram of the Earth slowed with a red dot appeared over the coast of Virginia.
"Coordinates locked," said Robin as he got the location up, "Roanoke Island."
"You did it," said Rio as she wrapped her arms around Zatanna's waist in a loving hug.
"Rio, not now," whispered Zatanna in both annoyance and arousal.
There was a flash of lightning and a kid that appeared to be 10 with black hair wearing a red jacket.
"How did you get here?" questioned Kaldur as they all approached the boy.
"Hey, Billy," said Rio casually.
"You know him?" asked Superboy.
"Read his mind," said Rio with a smirk.
Miss Martian's eyes glowed as she focused but a moment later, she gasped.
"He's Captain Marvel!" she exclaimed in shock.
"And I'm Speedy Gonzalez," joked Wally, "Look, just because he believes he's Captain Marvel, doesn't mean he's…"
"Jeez, Wally," said Billy with a smug smile as he folded his arms, "Do I really need to bring you nachos and pineapple juice to get on your good side?"
This shut Wally up and as Billy explained everything, Rio looked over her shoulder. Heading down the hall, Rio narrowed her eyes as several lights shut off between her and the end of the hall where Reaper stood.
"What do you want, Sasuke?" questioned Rio suspiciously as Reaper removed his mask.
"Why are conversing with the Rider's comrades?" questioned Sasuke.
"That's not any of your business," said Rio as she approached Sasuke, "What I do in my own time doesn't concern you."
"Becoming the Rider yourself isn't very good for you," said Sasuke.
Rio remained silent as she glared into Sasuke's eyes.
"I won't let you continue on like this," said Sasuke before Rio grabbed him by the throat and pinned him against the wall.
"This won't kill you but it will take you a while to reform," said Rio as he eyes turned to fire, "Sorry, old friend. But I can't let you reveal this to anyone."
Sasuke went up in flames and turned to ash instantly.
"Rio, what's going on?" asked Zatanna as the lights came back on, "Why were the lights off and why does it smell like someone lit a fire?"
"The wiring must be faulty here," lied Rio as she turned to Zatanna, "So, what's Billy say?"
"The adults are on another Earth and we're going to head to Roanoke shortly once everyone's finished preparing," said Zatanna.
"I have something that I want to give you," said Rio as she pulled her necklace off her neck.
Taking the ring off it, she muttered a quick spell so that it would fit Zatanna and placed it on her left ring finger.
"Rio…" said Zatanna as she looked up at her girlfriend, "I'm sorry, but…"
Rio placed a finger on Zatanna's lips to quiet her then smiled.
"That's not what I mean," said Rio as she held Zatanna's hands in hers, "It's just a gift. And, who know. It may eventually become what you were thinking."
Giving Zatanna a kiss on the cheek, Rio walked around her then into a Boom Tube.
Rio arrived through a Boom Tube in Happy Harbor Hospital and walked by the cafeteria, where Raven was distracting some of the preteens with her magic while Starfire helped the older ones take care of the others. Giving Raven a nod when she saw her, Rio headed up to Meena's room to find Cyborg looking after the sleeping girl.
"How's she doing?" asked Rio as she approached Meena's bedside.
"Barely hanging on," said Cyborg as Rio looked at Meena's heart monitor while Krypto came over and whimpered, "She's got a heart transplant scheduled for the 11th but she might not make it until then."
Rio gently cupped Meena's cheek and twirled her finger in the young girl's hair.
"She'll make it," said Rio as she pulled a crystal necklace out of her pocket then placed it in the girl's hand, "I'm sure of it."
Rio headed back to the door but stopped with her hand on the doorway.
"The adults will return soon," said Rio as she looked over her shoulder a little, "Just make sure she survives until then."
She then left and Cyborg went back to monitoring Meena's vital signs.
(Ten Minutes Later)
Klarion felt something off then turned around as he put up a barrier that deflected Robin's and Moon Knight's boomerangs as well as Artemis's arrows.
"Is that really the best you can do?" he questioned them.
The trio dove out of the way of the lightning Klarion had summoned just as Superboy, Kaldur, and Kid Flash charged him from three different sides. A barrier appeared over the pentagram, sending the three flying away when they hit it.
"Etativel mih ffo eht margatnep!" yelled Zatanna as she ran in front of Superboy to cast her spell, which bounced off the barrier.
"Baby magic," scoffed Klarion, "Fi ehs stnaw ot etativel os yldab, tel reh."
With a flick of his wrist, Klarion sent Zatanna flying away. Moon Knight caught her then gently sat her on the ground. She helped Zatanna up but she collapsed back to the ground with a grunt of pain. Moon Knight quickly scanned her let with the nanobots that made her suit and gritted her teeth under her mask.
"Damn it," she thought as she cast a quick healing spell on the leg before looking at Zatanna, "Stay back and let us handle it."
She went to continue fighting Klarion, who hit every member of the team besides her, Superboy, Miss Martian, and Zatanna with lightning coming out from the gem in the pentagram.
"A-Artemis!" exclaimed Zatanna in dismay, "Robin!"
Taking a deep breath, Zatanna turned to the side and held her hand out.
"Temleh fo Etaf, laever flesruoy!" she called out.
A large rock started to fade away and reveal the Helmet of Fate was right behind it. A bolt of lightning struck several feet away and Billy appeared when it vanished.
"It's the ge…!" exclaimed Billy before Miss Martian covered his mouth to silence him.
"Not so loud, Billy," thought Miss Martian through the psychic link, "I've linked you telepathically to the others."
"Cool," thought Billy in excitement before turning toward Klarion, who was now choking Moon Knight by putting a vacuum, "It's the gem… in the middle of the pentagram. Destroy it and we win!"
As she was gasping for air, Moon Knight noticed Zatanna about to put on the Helmet of Fate.
"B-Banshō Ten'in," gasped out Moon Knight while shakily holding her hand out toward Zatanna.
The Helmet of Fate flew out of her hands, surprising her as Moon Knight caught it.
"Rio, no!" yelled Zatanna in worry.
Moon Knight slammed the helmet on and Klarion's vacuum was dispelled by the bright golden light. Doctor Fate flew into the air and stared down Klarion.
"Klarion, it's time to end this!" declared Doctor Fate.
"Billy, tell Zatara!" thought Miss Martian quickly.
Billy quickly vanished with a bolt of lightning while Fate and Klarion fired beams at each other. Eventually breaking off the attack, Klarion threw exploding balls of magic at Fate, who flew around each of the blasts. Zatanna could only watch as Fate battled Klarion while Miss Martian moved the unconscious Robin and Artemis away from the fight while Kaldur went to help as Kid Flash got ready to grab the gem. However, as she fought, Doctor Fate shimmered back to Rio before returning to Fate.
"There, see!" exclaimed Klarion tauntingly, "When the world's split, the Helmet split too! Nabu's not all here! And you're losing hold on his power, you pathetic, soon to be dead, little girl! You gave up yourself for nothing."
"That's what you think, Witch Boy," said Fate as a spinning sphere of energy appeared in her hand, "I haven't even begun to show you what I can do with just a fraction of this power!"
Plunging the sphere into the barrier, in combination with Miss Martian's and Kaldur's attacks, began to weaken it.
"No!" shouted Klarion as he fell to his knees while the barrier disappeared.
Fate threw an energy ankh at Klarion, restraining him.
"Now, Kid!" declared Kaldur as he looked back.
Kid Flash zoomed forward and grabbed the gem as he ran through the pentagram
"Rio, catch!" yelled Kid Flash as he skidded to a halt then threw the gem at Fate.
Reaching out her hand, Fate grabbed the gem and began the spell.
"Yam eht owt emoceb eno ecno erom!" chanted Fate as the area was illuminated in a bright light.
Klarion's cohorts appeared when the light died and fell unconscious as Batman, Zatara, and Captain Marvel appeared as well.
"Well, they don't make evil immortal sorcerers like they used to," conceded Klarion.
He snapped his fingers, making the ankh restraining him vanish as he dusted himself off while getting to his feet.
"Teekl," called out Klarion.
Teekl jumped off Superboy and ran toward Klarion while reverting from his were-beast form. He jumped into Klarion's arms and a portal appeared next to him.
"See you later, alligators!" called out Klarion to the members of the Justice League before jumping into the portal with it closing behind him.
"Aren't you going to stop him?!" called out Kid Flash to Fate.
"To what end?" questioned Fate, "Klarion is chaos personified. He cannot be contained."
"Fate!" called out Zatara as he helped Zatanna to her feet and over to the others.
"Rio, it's time to take the Helmet off," said Zatanna.
"No," said Fate, surprising everyone, "This was the deal we agreed to. Three times the girl puts on the Helmet and she becomes the vessel of Fate. Her affinity for the mystic arts make her the perfect candidate as well."
"You can't do that!" shouted Artemis angrily.
"She has her own life to live!" yelled Robin.
"Constantine told me Kent's soul is also in there!" yelled Kid Flash, "He would never allow…!"
"Kent Nelson did object strenuously when the girl first put on the Helmet," said Fate, "However, once we negotiated the terms, I released his soul to Death. He is gone."
Zatanna started to tear up and Zatara noticed this.
"Take me instead," he said, shocking everyone, "My powers are already at their peak. My body is physically stronger, better able to stand the strain of your power."
"All true," acknowledged Fate, "But if I remove the Helmet, what guarantee do I have you'll put it on?"
"My word," resigned Zatara as he recited a spell.
Fate landed on the ground and removed the Helmet. She turned back into Rio, who staggered for a moment before catching herself.
"Dad, don't," said Zatanna as Rio held up the Helmet.
Giving his daughter one last hug, he handed her off to Rio in exchange for the Helmet of Fate. Holding Zatanna tightly, they watched as Zatara put on the Helmet and turned into Doctor Fate.
"You plan worked," said Fate to Rio before turning toward Klarion's cohorts, "Leave these to the Fates."
Pulling them up into the air with him, Fate and the villains disappeared in a flash of light.
"What did he mean by that?" asked Superboy as they all looked at Rio, who quickly finished healing Zatanna's leg before stepping away from her.
"After Kent was sent to the afterlife, Fate and I made an additional condition to the deal," said Rio as she hung her head, "If he would let me remain in control, I would get him Zatara as his host."
"So, you used me to get close to my father?!" questioned Zatanna angrily.
"Yes," said Rio with no remorse in her voice, "Adding you to the JDL, becoming your girlfriend, all of it was to get Zatara to eventually agree to become Fate's host."
Turning around, Rio was greeted by a slap from Zatanna, who then threw her ring back at her then stormed off. Picking up the ring, Rio turned away and walked into a Boom Tube.
(The Next Day)
Rio watched as Zatanna refused to acknowledge her existence while moving her stuff into a room in Mount Justice. Heading down a separate hall, Rio slumped against a wall and sobbed into her knees. What she didn't know was that Wally had followed her and was watching her cry.
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