Flames of Despair
I don't own any properties in this story.
Rio Uzumaki grunted as she held a bag of ice to her head after hitting it on the hood of a car. Going back over to the hood, she fiddled with some wires before she yelped while jumping back as she shocked herself. Kicking the fender, Rio hopped around on one foot before finally sitting down in the dirt. Looking up at the night sky, Rio gazed at the moon before shaking her head.
"You still watch over me even though I ended our contract," she thought as she heard someone approaching behind her, "What do you want, Kaldur?"
"We've been talking," said Kaldur as Rio got off the ground.
"Who's we?" questioned Rio as she got back to fixing the car.
"The team, the Teen Titans, and JLD," he explained, "You could come back if you want."
Scoffing at that, Rio checked the carburetor before closing the hood.
"And what does the League say about this?" she asked as she got on a board and went under the car.
"They don't know about it," said Kaldur as a light appeared under the car.
"That's not good," joked Rio as she pulled herself out to grab a wrench before going back under, "You saw how angry everyone was when they found out about Justice League Dark."
"But this does not concern them," argued Kaldur, "This is about the teams you helped build and those that care about you."
"I thought you learned your lesson when you and the rest of Young Justice went inside my head," quipped Rio as she began welding under the car with her finger.
"We just decided to give you a chance to return if you wanted," said Kaldur as he turned to leave.
"How's Zatanna?" asked Rio as she pulled herself out from under the car and sat up.
"She's doing fine," said Kaldur as he looked back at Rio, "Why do you ask?"
"Is she… still mad about me tricking her father into becoming Dr. Fate?" asked Rio sadly.
"Not that I know of," said Kaldur.
Sighing, Rio pulled off a glove and transformed into a skeletal one with blue flames.
"Has she been back home at all?" she asked, "I mean, back to her actual house that she used to live in."
"Why do you ask?" questioned Kaldur with genuine interest.
"Please, just answer the question," begged Rio as she put her hand out then slipped on her glove.
"No, she hasn't," stated Kaldur.
Holding her head in grief, Rio sighed before standing up.
"I'll be right back," she said with pain in her voice as she headed inside the garage.
Kaldur waited a moment before he heard a noise inside. The moment he opened the door, he was thrown back by a large explosion that knocked the wind out of him. Slowly catching his breath, he looked up at the blazing inferno that had encompassed the garage.
Help me… Please… Help me…
Zatanna yelled in fright as she shot up from her bed in a cold sweat.
"Zatanna, what's wrong?!" questioned M'gann as she and Connor came rushing into the room.
"Rio…" said Zatanna through pained breaths, "Rio's in trouble…"
(The Next Day)
The entirety of Young Justice gathered at the garage that Rio had been working at as Batman talked with some detectives while Kaldur also relayed the events to Batman.
"Rio wouldn't die to fire, would she?" questioned Artemis.
"No," said the slightly pale Zatanna, "The Rider inside of her would make it impossible for her to die by normal means. Superman even took her to outer space and it didn't kill her."
"Well?" asked Robin as Kaldur walked over to them.
"Nothing," stated Kaldur with regretfully.
"Nothing?" asked Kid Flash.
"The bomb techs didn't find any detonator or point where the explosion first occurred," stated Kaldur.
"You don't think she tried to kill herself again, do you?" asked Artemis.
"That's not it," said Constantine as he appeared behind the group.
"What are you talking about?" asked Robin.
"Rio was investigating an unusual amount of black magic coming from that building so she went deep undercover to find out what it was about," explained Constantine before he looked at Zatanna, "You've seen better days."
"She just had a bad dream last night," explained M'gann.
Raising an eyebrow, Constantine walked up to Zatanna before placing a finger to her forehead. Muttering something, both he and Zatanna closed their eyes before opening them to reveal they were glowing.
(Dream Realm)
Constantine watched as Rio entered the garage and go over to a workbench before suddenly stopping. Hearing something behind him, Constantine turned around and moved out of the way just in time to dodge a black energy beam. The beam knocked Rio into the workbench, causing her to moan in pain. Getting to her feet, she turned into Ghost Rider, who was pissed before a device rolled on the ground in front of her. The device blew up and destroyed everything but Constantine let the dream burn around him. Rewinding the dream by sweeping his hand, Constantine stopped it right before the bomb went off and looked at the person that had stabbed Ghost Rider with a blade cackling with black energy before moving everything frame by frame to see the pair vanish just as the bomb went off.
(Real World)
Constantine and Zatanna staggered away from each other and Kaldur caught Zatanna as Batman approached.
"What's going on?" he asked Constantine.
"Apparently, our friendly neighborhood Ghost Rider has been kidnapped," explained Constantine to the surprise of everyone.
"Kidnapped?" questioned Zatanna.
"And I know the face of the man that did this," said Constantine.
Rio groaned in pain as she awoke to the feeling of having her skull crushed to dust. Looking down, she saw the blurry outline of something protruding from her chest.
"Well, you're awake," said an all too familiar voice.
"How… are… you… alive?" asked Rio weakly.
"Did you really think I didn't take precautions in the event of my death?" questioned the man in the shadows in a smug tone, "When I perished, I managed to manipulate the Speed Force to send my consciousness to another Earth and into the body of my doppelganger."
Walking a little closer but still having his face obscured, the man examined Rio before chuckling.
"Imagine that I would find the very same brat that caused Savitar to kill me in the Earth I end up on," said the man as he paced back and forth in front of the box Rio was held inside of, "Little Naruto Uzumaki… or would you prefer I call you Rio August Uzumaki? Maybe Moon Knight? Or even Ghost Rider?"
Rio tried to transform but found it extremely hard before she cried out in pain when another spike impaled her through the back and out the front.
"I'd be very careful if I were you," advised the man as he pointed the open hatch next to Rio, "The closes and it will cause that Speed Bomb you're in to blow up everything within 500 miles. Not to mention that that box is producing quantum energy inside of it, which in turn, makes it impossible for you to transform."
Hanging her head as she barely held onto consciousness, Rio managed to get a look at the man's face before she passed out again.
"Do you want to know who it was that did it?" questioned Dr. Joseph Carver as he stepped right up to the box, "It was me. The one who mad your stepfather mad. The one who drove your stepmother insane. The one who killed your grandfather. The one who let your wife know about that project. The one who hired those men two years ago on this Earth," he chuckled as Rio went limp, "I'm the one that let Savitar know about your mother."
"Dr. Joseph Carver was the man that Rio defeated with her world's Flash just before she arrived on ours," explained Robin to Constantine as an image of the man Constantine observed in Zatanna's mind was displayed by the computer in the cave, "He tried to merge with the Speed Force but became unstable with Rio having to a Speed Bomb to match his speed to depower him."
"But from what I've been told, he should be dead," stated Constantine plainly.
"We don't know how he survived but the odds of this Dr. Carver being the same one that Rio fought are near impossible," explained Kaldur.
T… a…
Zatanna looked out of the corner of her eye but then back at the team as they went over what they were going to do.
Z… Ta… Na…
Looking over her shoulder, Zatanna saw nothing but this raised some concern with Connor.
"Something wrong?" he asked.
"Don't you hear that?" she asked them all.
"I don't hear anything," said Connor with concern.
"It's like I can hear Rio's voice," explained Zatanna as she looked around, "But it's… faint. Like… she's in pain."
"Then let's make it a lot more clear," said Constantine as he waved his hands and a table appeared in the middle of them all with a particular item on it.
"A Ouija Board?" asked Artemis.
"This is normally used to contact demons but what few people don't know is that it came be used by those skilled in magic to communicate with each other," said Constantine as he gestured for Zatanna to join him at the table.
Taking Zatanna's hand and placing it on the planchette, he held it with her as everyone watched.
"Rio," said Constantine in a loud voice, "Can you hear us?"
For a few seconds, nothing happened. But then, Zatanna and Constantine felt something slowly move their hands to the 'YES' on the board.
"Well, that's good," said Constantine with relief.
"Rio, are you alright," questioned Zatanna urgently.
Again, nothing happened for a few seconds before the planchette moved around again.
CARVER
"Yes, we know about Dr. Carver," assured Zatanna, "But are you okay?"
SPEED
"Speed?" asked Constantine curiously, "As in the Speed Force?"
BOMB
The members of Young Justice turned extremely pale, even M'gann, while Constantine looked confused.
"What's a Speed Bomb?" he asked.
"Very bad," said Wally urgently, "Rio, can you tell us where you are?"
RADIATION
"Radiation?" asked Kaldur, "You're somewhere there's radiation?"
P R I
The planchette shook before it crumbled to dust.
"No!" exclaimed Zatanna in worry, "Riaper! Riaper! Riaper!"
Nothing happened as a result of the spell, despite Zatanna constantly trying to get it to work.
"Zatanna, you need to stop," said Constantine as he pulled her into a hug, "It's gone."
"But it's not over," said Reaper as he appeared and everyone looked at him.
"What do you mean?" asked Connor.
"Dr. Carver, the same Dr. Carver from Naruto's home Earth, has trapped him inside of a Speed Bomb with him as the explosive conduit," said Sasuke as he removed his mask, "Right now, his manipulating the speed of particles in the air to secure Naruto to the Speed Bomb and prevent him from breaking out."
"But can't Rio just absorb the energy the Speed Bomb gives off again?" asked M'gann.
"I don't think so," said Constantine as they all turned toward him, "Rio had been having me look for ways to use magic to call on the Speed Force's power. I think she was still trying to get her powers back."
"A Speed Bomb is concentrated Speed Force energy that is extremely volatile when set ablaze," stated Sasuke as he typed some things into the computer to bring up a recording of a hydrogen bomb going off, "It's about fifty times more powerful than a hydrogen bomb and the radiation it gives off is beyond what a human should be able to take in."
"But Rio did it," argued Wally, "She was able to absorb it without any side effects."
"No, she didn't," stated Sasuke frustratingly, "It caused her Speed Sickness to exacerbate and get worse."
"What exactly is Speed Sickness?" asked Artemis, "Rio never really told us what it is."
"It's like radiation sickness but with the Speed Force instead," stated Death from the hallway that led to the rooms, "Over exposure to the Speed Force cause the user to move at speeds beyond their control before they eventually get absorbed by the Speed Force."
"So, Rio has been knowingly using the Speed Force even though it would kill her?" asked Zatanna.
"Apparently so," remarked Constantine, "From what I could gather from Orchid about Rio, she was always the type to put her wellbeing after that of others."
"Exactly like Naruto," said Death sadly, "When Sasuke turned her into the Black Flash, it was possibly the only way to halt her Speed Sickness. But with what Savitar did and forcing him to recall the night his parents were killed, he did return Naruto to his regular state but he also brought his Speed Sickness back."
"Naruto and I are two of the people that survived that lightning that had struck that hospital when we were babies," explained Sasuke, "When his parents were killed, we promised to always be there for each other when we needed help. What I did was what he would've wanted to happen."
"But Rio told us that she didn't want our help," said M'gann.
"Naruto is afraid of forming attachments because he doesn't want to harm those around him'" stated Death as she held her hands together, "Myself being one of those attachments."
(That Night)
Zatanna tossed and turned in her sleep as countless things flew across her vision before she finally relaxed.
(Dream Realm)
Zatanna looked around at the large dark before she saw a large cube in the middle of the room surrounded by lights. Walking around to the front, Zatanna gasped at what she saw.
"Rio!" exclaimed Zatanna as she tried to get to Rio but was stopped by an invisible wall in front of the open end of the cube.
Rio raised her head weakly, looking directly at Zatanna before hanging it again.
"How is my little peon?" questioned Dr. Carver as he approached the box, not noticing Zatanna.
Rio chuckled and this confused both Dr. Carver and Zatanna.
"What's so funny?" demanded Dr. Carver.
"Nothing," said Rio in a carefree tone, "Absolutely nothing. I'm just finally happy."
"About what?" asked Zatanna and Dr. Carver at the same time.
"I shouldn't have survived," said Rio sadly, "That day, 25 years ago, I shouldn't have survived it. The Speed Force was what allowed me to live but it was also going to take it away."
A tear gently splattered on the ground below Rio's head as she cried.
"I have finally found a place to die in peace," confessed Rio as she raised her head, "The only thing I regret is not being able to spend a little more time with those I care about. Tcatnoc Tohsdaed. Taypirp."
Realizing Rio was talking to her, Zatanna nodded.
"I will," said Zatanna as she vanished.
"You lost, Carver," said Rio with a weak smile, "My friends are on their way as we speak."
(Real World)
Zatanna quickly got dressed and silently slipped through a Zeta Beam platform to end up in what appeared to be London. Walking a couple streets down from Parliament, Zatanna knocked on a door on Baker Street and it opened up a short while later to reveal Scandal Savage.
"I… I know where Rio is," said Zatanna nervously.
Grabbing Zatanna and pulling her quickly inside, Scandal dragged her into a library. Throwing to the ground, she looked up three of Secret Six that were sitting around the fire she was in front of. Scandal whispered into Deadshot's ear and he examined Zatanna with intrigue.
"How is it that you learned of Ghost Rider's location?" questioned Deadshot.
"I-I saw it in a dream," confessed Zatanna nervously, "She was being held by someone from her Earth, Dr. Carver, and said to contact you and that she was in Pripyat."
"As expected," said Deadshot as Cassandra poured him a glass of wine, "We already knew about Carver but we didn't know where he was hiding. We also considered Pripyat as a possible hideout of his but this confirms it."
"Why should we even trust her?" questioned Scandal, "For all we know, she could be here on orders from the League or from Waller."
"I assure you, I'm not here on either of their orders," said Zatanna nervously.
"Prove it," demanded Scandal.
"How?" asked Zatanna before she got an idea, "Do you have a Ouija Board here?"
Scandal gestured at Cassandra to grab the item in question and she returned with it. Handing it over to Zatanna, she set it up and took a deep breath.
"Oir, raeh ym eciov," recited Zatanna calmly, "Rio, can you hear me?"
Several seconds of silence later, the planchette moved under Zatanna's hand toward the "YES" in the corner.
"Rio, I'm with Deadshot and Scandal," said Zatanna.
"Is she to be trusted?" questioned Scandal.
The planchette remained on "YES" and Deadshot decided to speak up.
"Are you able to transform?" he asked.
The planchette moved to "NO" and Deadshot rubbed his chin. The planchette began shaking and moved again.
NOT
MUCH
TIME
LEFT
BOMB
DESTROY
REGION
"I'll head back to the cave and get the others," said Zatanna before the planchette swiftly moved to "NO", "You don't want the team to help?"
NOT
SAFE
ONLY
SIX
AND
YOU
The planchette crumbled under Zatanna's hand and she looked at the trio.
"Go get Ascalon and Caitlin," said Deadshot to Cassandra, "We're heading to Ukraine."
As he said this, a crow watched from the balcony with a red eye that had three tomoes in a circle around the pupil watching.
"We've got the location," said Reaper as he looked back at the members of Young Justice, "Pripyat."
(Five Hours Later)
Reaper led Young Justice through the town of Pripyat as Miss Martian looked around.
"Why does this place feel so dead?" she asked.
"Back in the 80s, a nuclear reactor melted down and sent a cloud of radioactive dust high into the air," explained Kid Flash as they continued to walk, "The radiation spread all over the world but since this city was closest, it got hit the hardest. As a result, the entire city has been abandoned ever since."
"My place is just up ahead," said Reaper calmly.
"You actually live here?" asked Kaldur.
"I'm immune to the radiation so I can go anywhere in the city I please," stated Reaper as they walked through the courtyard of a building, "This is also the one place where I won't run into anyone since only idiots actually come here."
Suddenly stopping, Reaper held his hand out before tackling them out of the way of a sniper's bullet.
"What was that?" questioned Artemis as they all got to cover.
"Sniper," said Reaper as he pulled out his shotguns, "Don't move. I'll be right back."
Turning into smoke that quickly dispersed, Reaper went to deal with the sniper as Connor looked up.
"Someone's in a room above us," he said as they all looked at him.
Hurrying up some stairs, Artemis took point as they moved through carefully as their Geiger Counters went off slowly. They made it too a room and their Geiger counters stopped. Looking at each other, Kaldur cautiously reached for the door when it opened to reveal Zatanna, who seemed surprised to see them.
"What are you guys doing here?" questioned Zatanna.
"What are we doing here?!" exclaimed Robin, "What are you doing here?!"
"Could you all keep it down?" asked Deadshot from a sniper's perch, "I'm trying to eliminate this guard."
Pulling the trigger, Deadshot fired his silenced sniper rifle before pulling the bolt back and putting in another round.
"Was he the one firing at us?" asked Connor as everyone entered the room.
"No," said Deadshot, "I took out the other sniper that was though."
"None of you ever listen."
Looking at the now turned on TV, they saw a very static picture of Rio, who looked annoyed.
"Don't have much time before I lose this connection so shut up and listen. I'm right on top of Reactor 2 but Carver has another Speed Bomb set up over in Reactor 4. These ones are even more unstable than the previous ones I used. If they go off, everything between Berlin and Moscow is gone. Sasuke, Connor, Scandal, and Artemis will head toward Reactor 2 with Sasuke while the rest of you head to Reactor 4. Wally will be going between the two after you all finish setting up a device to contain the Speed Bomb's explosion with a tachyon device attached to his chest to make him go faster."
Everyone looked at each other before back at the TV.
"Now that all of you have taken that in, Ascalon has a bunch of Radiation Shields that should protect you from the radiation of the reactors. Sparing lives isn't an option here. From here on out, you all are going to need to do what heroes have sworn never to do. You need to kill these men because any of them can set of the bombs and there is no way to disarm them."
Everyone exchanged looks again and appeared nervous about this conclusion.
"You need to hurry. Dr. Carver is going to set off the bombs…"
The TV shut off and Ascalon's stood outside the door. Sticking his hand in the room, he held out several radiation shields to the team. They each took one as Kid Flash attacked a metallic ring around the symbol on his chest. Tapping the symbol, Kid Flash gasped in surprise.
"That's new," he said as they attached the bands to their arms.
Deadshot fired again before he got up and tossed his sniper rifle to the side.
"Perimeter is secured," he said as he jumped down the hole Ascalon made.
(An Hour Later)
Zatanna, after having the layout of the plant explained by Deadshot, tried to prepare herself for the mission when Sasuke came up to her without his mask.
"How are you doing?" he asked.
"Tired," replied Zatanna as she ran a hand through her hair, "Exhausted. Fed up with all this stuff."
"You sound a lot like Naruto does now," said Sasuke as he took a seat next to her while music from the thirties and forties played on a loud speaker that came from the plant, "I already took a look inside earlier. Naruto isn't looking too good."
"If the bombs do go off, couldn't Rio just absorb the energy from the again?" asked Zatanna.
"No," replied Sasuke as he shook his head, "His Speed Sickness is already at a critical juncture. If he were to absorb another Speed Bomb, he'd die."
"Why do you care so much about Rio?" asked Zatanna sincerely, "You haven't seen each other in years but you act like she's a precious friend. You turned her into the Black Flash to save her from her Speed Sickness."
"That was only me injecting the Death element into her," explained Sasuke as he looked at his shotguns, "It was temporary while I figured out a way to get rid of the Speed Sickness. As for your other question…"
He sighed and hung his head.
"I was there," confessed Sasuke, "The day that lightning struck the hospital where Naruto was in the NICU, I was there."
"You were?" asked Zatanna in surprise.
"Not just me," responded Sasuke as he pulled out a little charm shaped like a star, "There were 10 other babies there that day. We were the only ones that survived. All of our parents became close and when we were old enough, we each made a promise that if one of us needed help, we'd be there for them."
Looking at Zatanna, he showed her his red eyes with the markings in them.
"This is my meta powers," he explained, "I can memorize, copy, and even predict the movements of other. Everyone else has their own abilities but we never told each other. It wasn't until after I started serving Death that I found out about Naruto's Speed Sickness."
Putting away the charm, he pulled a book out from under his cloak and handed it to Zatanna.
"I've been trying to figure out how to rid him of it," said Sasuke as Zatanna went through the book of complex equations that she'd never even thought could exist.
The music stopped and Sasuke put his mask on.
"That's our cue," said Reaper as he flew away and Zatanna quickly hit the book before heading to the meeting place.
(Ten Minutes Later)
Dr. Carver watched the unconscious Rio bleed out when he heard footsteps behind him.
"If it isn't the good doctor," said Reaper as he was led inside by two guards with guns pointed at him.
Carver turned around and raised an eyebrow at the sight of Reaper.
"We found him outside," said a guard before he tossed a chain to the floor, "We only found that on him."
"Well, I didn't believe it when I heard you survived, young Sasuke," said Carver slyly.
"That just proves how narrow your mind is," said Reaper as he kept a close watch on Rio.
A guard yelled as he was thrown back by a blast of ice from Caitlin Snow, the new Killer Frost, before she turned away.
"That should be the last of them," she said as she looked at the rest of the team, "We almost done here?"
"We've still got some pieces to put together but we're just about done," said Kaldur as Kid Flash came running in.
"We're clear for now," he relayed before heading out to do a continuous sweep of the immediate area.
"Elbmessa!" called out Zatanna as the machine quickly put itself together around the large Speed Bomb.
"The core must be suspended directly over the middle of the device in order to properly contain it," stated Ascalon as Robin, who was repelling from the ceiling, moved said device into place.
"Got it!" he exclaimed as he Miss Martian moved him back to the ground.
Ascalon connected himself to the starting mechanism of the containment field and began running the program. The barrier of the containment field started up and everyone stood back while Killer Frost placed her hands on the ground, getting ready to freeze the water deep in the earth.
"Detonating in 3, 2, 1," stated Ascalon before activating the Speed Bomb.
The entire room shook slightly, causing everyone to look around, before Reaper looked back at Rio.
"Naruto, I need you to get out of there," said Reaper urgently, "Get out of that box."
"We had a deal," said Rio in a hoarse voice, "Get revenge on death… the man who caused the death of my parents. Well… let's finish it."
Rio roared as she tried to transform as part of her skin started to burn.
"Go hot," said Reaper as he held his right hand out toward the guard to his right.
Artemis came out of the shadows and shot one of the few guards in the room in the chest with a pistol before knocking out two more. Scandal appeared with a large shotgun that had an axe blade on the end and swung it right into a guard's neck as Connor punched another one into the air. A blur of electrical energy came running through the room and within that instant, Scandal's gun had been pointed to another guard with her blasting off his head while Reaper shot the guards on either side of him. Dr. Carver meanwhile, had been thrown into the box, landing next to Rio, who roared as she finally managed to transform into Ghost Rider.
The shaking started getting worse as the entire room was emptied and Reaper quickly grabbed the chain on the floor.
"Naruto!" he called out as he threw an end of it toward Ghost Rider, who caught it.
Reaper pulled as hard as he could with Connor joining him as they fought against the huge magnetic force that was inside the box. The rods holding up the hatch trembled as the rest of the team, minus Killer Frost and Ascalon, entered the room just when Dr. Carver started to catch his breath. This caused Ghost Rider to look down at him then grab him by the back of the neck. Ghost Rider gazed right into Reaper's eyes and nodded. Letting go of the chain, to the surprise of everyone, Ghost Rider brought Carver in front of her and stared directly into his eyes. The rods holding up the hatch fell, closing it and giving off a blinding light as Carver shrieked as his body and soul were burned.
"Goodbye… my friends."
The Speed Bomb went off but the explosion imploded on Ghost Rider, leaving no trace anything had been there.
(Several Hours Later)
The members of Young Justice, the Secret Six, the Teen Titans, and Justice League Dark sat in the House of Mystery in a large sitting area around a table while Ascalon stood off to the side. Everyone was silent and, eventually, they started filing out, not saying a word the entire time as they left. Constantine and Zatanna were the last two in the room and Constantine left to get some sleep, but not before looking back at Zatanna with worry.
Once he was gone. Zatanna broke into tears before Jade reentered and sat next to her.
"I know it's hard," said Jade as she tried to console Zatanna, "But Rio wouldn't want us to just sit around all depressed."
"It is good that you both are here," said Orchid as she appeared behind the pair, "I have something for you both."
Holding out a tablet, Jade took it and played the only thing on it, a single video. In it, Rio was standing in the parking garage she'd been working in.
"What does everyone all mean to me? Wow."
Rio looked down in the video before sighing.
"Ever since my parents died, I've only let four people get close to me. My adoptive grandfather, Meena, Jade, and Zatanna. Each time, when I let someone get close, I'm terrified of losing them. I don't mean to come off cold. It's just… I don't want to hurt them. I did have friends back home but I alienated them just like I'm doing to the members of my own teams right now. The truth is… I happy it's ending. It's not because I want my life to end. I'm just happy I got to meet such great and wonderful people that keep being my friends, no matter how bad things have gotten between us."
Zatanna started crying again while Jade tried to not do that exact thing.
"Jade? She is one unique individual. My first night here on this Earth, she helped me set up everything. My history. My public image. She made me who I am in this world and I couldn't thank her enough even if we were in the Void, where time doesn't pass. I owe her more than I could ever give. She had been resorting to a life of crime to help pay for her mother's medical bills but that's not a problem anymore. I've set up a trust fund with more than enough money so that she doesn't have to do that sort of thing anymore and she can spend more time with her family."
"You idiot," said Jade as she wiped the tears from her eyes, "You stupid idiot."
"Then there's Zatanna. I've done such horrible things to her. I doubt she'd ever forgive me for tricking her father into becoming Dr. Fate. But… the reason I did that was because I knew it was time. It was time for them to both move on. They were afraid of losing each other but that's a part of life. You know, I see a lot of myself in Zatanna. Smart, good looking, and just a tad bit prideful."
Zatanna lightly chuckled at this as she continued to cry.
"For the longest time, I was hooked up on my parents' death. That cause me to do things that I deeply regret. I don't want Zatanna to do those same things that I did. I want her to know that life is something that should be enjoyed and not to be spent focusing on keeping things the way they are. I fell in love with her because I knew, someday, she'd be faced with a choice of confronting these situations and I wanted to be there by her side, holding her hand."
Zatanna covered her eyes and kept her gaze off the tablet but continued to listen.
"As for everyone else, I'm glad they were there for me. During the bad times and the… slightly better times."
Both women couldn't help but laugh at this.
"The Teen Titans. Starfire, Cyborg, and Raven. They are the greatest friends and students I could've asked for. With the JLD, I brought them together to unite under a common goal. Protect the world from forces that the Justice League can't see. We have done so much in our own and special way and I couldn't be prouder of them. Young Justice… my first team. When I first met them all, I didn't really like them. I thought they were naïve children playing hero without knowing the consequences. But they proved me wrong."
Turning away from the camera, Rio took a deep breath.
"With everyone around me, it just seems easier to say things I never thought of saying before. It's one of the things I love about them. They don't need me anymore. They can handle anything on their own because they are fearless, independent… loving, kind. They are, without question, the best people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. I've never thanked them for choosing me to be their friend because they all are my treasure. I wouldn't give them up for the world. They deserve the world. They deserve to be happy the rest of their lives and no one wants that more than me."
She looked back at the camera and gave it a big smile.
"I love you all."
The video ended and Jade joined Zatanna in crying as she had failed to stop herself. Orchid, meanwhile, looked at the photo of Moon Knight and the Teen Titans on the wall, finding it was still intact
(?)
Naruto's eyes shot open as sat up and groaned lightly. Staggering to his feet he limped out of the alley he'd been in and to the street but froze when he saw how everything seemed about 20 years outdated. Hurrying over to a newsstand, he grabbed a paper and looked at it.
October 7, 1990
"Where the hell am I?" he asked as he looked at the Central City on Earth-1.
Because of how unstable the Speed Bomb made his body, Naruto's entire form was changed when he went to Earth-16, which is why he turned into a girl. So it would be safe to say that the reverse would also happen if he returned to Earth-1. Next chapter will be the end of the first arc of the story so stick around.
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