Youth
Stephano Hungary: Okay, so here's chapter 1, officially! I know ya'll just couldn't wait for it! So, enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do own Justice League Unlimited, or any spells or magic amulets that are similar to the ones mentioned in real life. :3
Chapter 1: The Spell
-BAM!- "What was that?!" a man shouted to the other guard. "I don't know, but we have to guard the exhibit items!" They were security for an Egyptian exhibit that had recently come to Gotham city. It was about midnight when they had heard the sound. All of the items in the exhibit were priceless and had many legends about them.
-BAM!- "AH!" One of the guards shouted as the door to the amulet room was blasted open. The person who blasted the door open came floating into the room surrounded in a yellow light. "At last…" the feminine voice said. "Hey, you can't come in here!" The woman kept on going forward despite the guards' wishes. "I'm warning you!" She stopped as she between the two men, "Foolish mortals…" As she waved her hand, their weapons had turned to rust. She grabbed their faces with her hand and she sucked the youth right out of them.
"Uhhh…" The guards fell to the ground, now that they were old; they didn't have that much strength to stand up. "Hmph, pathetic." As the woman walked under the light that hovered over the amulet, her face was revealed, well, her mask was revealed… And it was Morgaine Le Fay. "The Amulet of the Papyrus Sceptre is finally mine." She broke the glass box that surrounded the emerald, sapphire, and porcelain jewel. "Soon, my son." As Morgaine grasped the gem, she disappeared back to her son's castle and prepared for tomorrow night to cast the spell.
-BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!-
Batman rushed over to one of the monitors in the watchtower. He pressed a button, "J'onn, I need you to transport everyone up here." There was a voice that responded on the intercom, "Everyone, Batman needs to see us in the watch tower. Prepare for transportation in 30 seconds." J'onn informed them. After the set time had passed, J'onn had the rest of the league in the monitor room. Flash yawned out loud, "Bats, it's one in morning! I need my beauty rest! What'll the ladies think?!" Batman turned towards him and gave him his trademark Batglare before settling himself back down in his chair to look at the screen. Flash flinched but walked closer to the monitor with the others.
A few more seconds later the rest of the gang came into the room, "What is it, Batman?" Superman asked. "A robbery at the Gotham City Natural Museum that happened at midnight." Batman pressed a button and a picture of the building came up. "Apparently, only a jewel called the Amulet of the Papyrus Sceptre was stolen." They all looked at the screen and tried to put the pieces together, "Who could've done this?" Hawkgirl asked. Wonder Woman leaned on the back of the chair, "Do they have any security footage?" "Let's find out." Batman replied.
He typed in a complicated code into the computer and had successfully hacked into the museum's security cameras within seconds. "You have got to teach me how to do that." Flash said. "Not likely." As they watched the tape play, they saw a familiar yellow glow and a masked woman walk on screen. Batman paused the tape just as she grasped the gem, "Morgaine Le Fay." "What's that witch up to now?" Wonder Woman asked.
Batman pulled up another window and began to type in information on the jewel she had stolen. "The Amulet of the Papyrus Sceptre, legend says that it gives the deceased renewed youth and vigor; represents the power of Isis, the Egyptian goddess of motherhood and fertility. She's planning on giving her son eternal youth, again." "I thought she said her son had eternal life, though. And why in the world would she want to give him eternal youth again after that stunt he pulled a few months back?!" Green Lantern spoke, "Who knows why she would do it, but like always, we have to take her down before she gets the chance." J'onn said.
Batman began to read information on how the jewel worked, "Apparently the spell only works at midnight during the waxing crescent moon in the northern hemisphere while being east of Cancer's constellation." Flash scratched his head, "And that would be…when?" Batman resisted the urge to glare at him, "Tomorrow." "WHAT?! And you expect us to find her in that amount of time?" He yelled. Batman stood up, "I don't." He walked out of the room to unknown location. "W-Where could he possibly be going?!" Flash shouted. Superman shook his head, "If I know Batman, it's probably to find something that can stop Le Fay."
Green Lantern, Superman, and Wonder Woman began to chuckle. "What's so funny?" Hawkgirl asked. "Oh, nothing. Just remembering when Le Fay turned us into kids so we could stop her son." Wonder Woman said. Flash ran up to her, "GL and Bats as kids. Details. Now." Wonder Woman laughed at him, "I'm gonna have to quote Batman on this, Flash. Not likely." She said as she and everyone else returned to their place. "…Awww…" Flash mumbled.
Batman snuck through an opening in the roof on top of the Gotham City Museum. He landed silently on the ground, and stalked towards the room that Morgaine had previously been in. In truth, he hadn't gone to the museum to investigate, no; he went there because he knew someone else would be present as well.
"Batman?" "I knew you'd be here, Jason." The Dark Knight said. Jason was standing next to the broken display and turned to face the doors when Batman walked in. "Do you have any idea where we can find Morgaine?" Batman asked. "I can track her a lot more efficiently now since she just left a fresh trail. Thank Merlin, I was in the neighborhood." Jason replied. "Yes, well, I need you to start now before she casts a spell." Jason groaned, "Ugh, what's that witch trying to do now?"
"I looked up some information on the artifact she stole and apparently it's rumored to give the deceased renewed youth and vigor." Batman explained. "What could she possibly be trying to revive?!" Jason shouted. "Not what, who?" Batman said. Jason froze and had his face scrunched up in thought. "…Mordred." He realized. Batman nodded, "Will you help us?" "Yes."
Jason stood back a few feet from Batman before he began to chant, "Change, change the form of man. Free the prince forever damned. Free the might from fleshy mire. Boil the blood in heart of fire. Gone, gone the form of man. Rise the demon, Etrigan!" And in a plume of flames, the demon, Etrigan, stood in place of Jason Blood. "Well, you'd better get started." Batman said as he walked away. "Believe me, I intend to…" Etrigan muttered darkly.
Morgaine walked into a dungeon-like room that she had placed her mystical and ceremonial artifacts in. Her newly acquired treasure was still locked in her tight grasp. "It won't be long now…" She looked through a window on a wall in front of her. The sun was now beginning to rise, and the shadow on her sun dial began to move.
Morgaine chuckled as she opened a book and skimmed along the ancient text with her index finger, "…No, not long at all." She began to memorize the spell.
It was now 11:00 at the watch tower and the team started to get worried… Well, Flash was starting to get worried, "Oh, man! What are we gonna do if that little demon has his youth again?! We are so screwed man, I mean seriously! We've seen what his mom does; imagine what other unspeakable horrors he'll be capable of! Game over, man, game over!!!" –Slap!- Flash blinked a few times and looked at Hawkgirl who had just slapped him, "Thank you…" He whispered, "You're welcome…" She replied.
Etrigan strode into the conference room, "Castle Branek." Was all he said before he walked out of the room towards the hanger. The others nodded and followed after him.
Batman and Etrigan were in the front two seats while everyone else was in the back, and soon, they were off towards Castle Branek, ready and willing to take down Morgaine.
In about half an hour they had arrived in an open field a few miles away from the castle, "We don't have a lot of time, so let's move." Batman said as Wonder Woman lifted him up by his arms and flew towards the castle. Etrigan huffed, "Don't have to tell me twice." And with that, Superman lifted him up and followed after everyone else.
As Morgaine placed Mordred down in a chair in the dungeon-like room, the amulet on her bodice began to glow brightly, "Oh, not now…" She hissed under her breath. She looked back at her dial and saw that the shadow was only 15 minutes away from midnight. "If I can keep them busy for a few minutes, then everything should go according to plan."
-BAM!- Morgaine gasped as the Justice League burst through the doors of the room, "Give it up, witch!" Etrigan threatened as his eyes glowed. Morgaine smirked underneath her mask, "I think my knights should keep you entertained for a good while, love." And with a wave of her hands the normally frozen knights in the room came to life and began to attack the league. "Aw, man, this is like something out of Harry Potter…" Flash groaned as he dodged the slash of a sword and threw the knight that just attacked him into an oncoming group, knocking them down.
It was now 10 minutes until midnight.
Etrigan sent a burst of flames towards Morgaine but she put up a shield with a wave of her hands and converted the fire into a beam that knocked him down. Morgaine then opened a drawer that flowers of different colors in it, and took them to the altar.
She had a bowl of clear water on the altar and began to place the flowers into it; the first was red, "Rosa bracteata, for beauty and courage." The next was orange, "Clivia miniata, for energy, enthusiasm, and warmth."
Wonder Woman was throwing a knight for a loop with her lasso when she noticed what Morgaine was doing, "She starting the spell, we have to stop it!" She flew towards her, but was knocked out of the air by five knights jumping on her.
Then next was yellow, "Cassia corymbosa, for new beginnings." Then green, "Daphne laureola, for health, resilience, and good fortune."
Flash rushed her but he slammed into a force field that was surrounding her and in a daze, he fell back, "Ah… Pretty daises…"
The next flower was blue, "Clerodendron ugandese, for peace, openness, and serenity." Purple, "Jacaranda mimosifolia, for dignity, pride, and success."
Hawkgirl and Green Lantern then tried to attack the force field. When Hawkgirl hit it with her mace, it rerouted the electricity to attack her instead, "AAAH!" When she fell to the ground, Green Lantern tried to help her but three knights came out of nowhere and tackled him away.
Now it was a lavender flower, "Lagerstroemia indica, for refinement, grace, and elegance." Then white, "Anemone sylvestris, for humility, and reverence."
When Batman tried to attack he was also electrocuted and collapsed to the ground, while J'onn was tackled by more than six knights.
Then last was a heavenly pink, "And, finally, Brugmansia, for innocence, joy, and youth." Once she placed the petals in the bowl, she threw a handful of silver powder over the contents which caused a small explosion in the bowl before light pink smoke began to rise from it, "It is almost complete." She whispered.
It was now 5 minutes to midnight.
Superman decided to try his hand and punched the shield a few times, making small cracks, and just when he was about to deal the final blow, ten knights tackled him, and threw him into a wall, making him crash into the next room.
Morgaine stood over the sun dial eagerly, "Five…" Wonder Woman and J'onn threw their arms up; making all the knights that were dog piling them fly off.
"Four…" Flash and Hawkgirl awoke from their daze and stared at the witch.
"Three…" Green Lantern used his ring to blast the knights that on him into another room.
"Two…" Superman pushed the rubble off of him and steadied himself on the wall.
"One…" "NO!" Etrigan shouted as the amulet began to glow a bright green before Morgaine placed it in the bowl, converting the smoke into a form of energy that began to wrap around her hands as she chanted the spell, "Uyoth hotuy ythou tyuho ohuty!"
Batman groaned weakly as he propped himself on his elbows, trying to raise himself off the ground.
The pink light grew brighter, and Morgaine aimed her arms at her son, "Become youthful, once more, my son!" And before she fired, she let her guard down, causing the force field to dissipate.
"Not if I can help it!!!" Superman flew with great speed from his position and tackled Morgaine to the floor, and although this stopped her from using the spell on Mordred, it came with great consequences. Morgaine unconsciously released the spell from her hands, sending the energy flying in a totally different direction.
A scream rang out through the room, "AAAH!" Superman looked up, "Oh, no!" Morgaine pushed herself up and saw where her spell landed, "NOOO!!" she cried, horrified at she saw. The other league members looked on in terror as the spell began to take its affect. "BRUCE!!" Wonder Woman yelled as Batman sank back down to the floor while the spell still swirled around his body.
.:END:.
Stephano Hungary: Oooh, now it's getting started, stay tuned for chappie two, my duckies! X3
Batman: And please, feel free to review about how this little hell raiser is one step away from losing a lung and a kidney.
Stephano: Eh, I can always live with one.
Batman: But can you live without your one brain?
Stephano: Ah, now that is the QUESTION! ... But in all seriousness, no. No, I cannot.
Preview of Chapter Two:
Once Morgaine disappeared, Wonder Woman flew over to Batman's body. "Bruce?!" She shouted. "Huh?" She noticed that some parts of his costume had become flat, and that only a tiny bit was filling out the suit. She pulled back the cowl of the outfit and froze, "…Hera…" Wonder Woman whispered.
Flash sprinted over, "What? What's the problem?!" He then got a good look at Batman, "…Oh, wow…"
"What are you guys looking at?" Batman looked down at himself, and when he did, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped, "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, NO!"
Ohh, now the plot thickens! X3