The image played over and over in his head. Diana stood behind Cassandra, hands gripping her head tightly. Then with a twist, the girl's neck was broken. The sound echoed in his head on an endless loop.
The pain was too much.
"No!" he shouted hoarsely, wildly. It was loud at first, but with every subsequent no, his voice grew weaker. "No! No, no, no, no!" A sob tore out of Batman's lips as he leaned over, arms bracing his upper body off of the floor.
This feeling, this sense of despair and violation—he hadn't felt that since he and his parents walked down the wrong alleyway. Though the ground was not stained with blood and loose pearls, the lifeless body of someone he cared for laid there, burning itself into his mind and memory.
Revulsion worked up his throat, choking his sobs, bile turning everything rancid within his mouth. He couldn't breath, he couldn't think. It was all too much.
And then a hand laid itself on his shoulder, calming, comforting. "It's alright, Bruce," Diana murmured to him, kneeling in front of his hunched body. "Everything will be okay."
Something familiar flickered. It was a feeling he had long since knew and it grew bigger, louder, and began to burn throughout him. Pure, hot rage flooded the vigilante's his very sight turning red. The floor was red; the walls were red; Diana was red. A shrieking howl rang in his ears, a vague shape forming on the floor. Some sort of monster in red and black, a symbol blazing on its chest. Despite the howling filling his ears, he could make out a clear, deep, monstrous voice screaming at him.
Vengeance!
Yes, vengeance. Every fiber of his being demanded it. And the very person he wanted it from was kneeling before him, pretending as if she hadn't torn apart his world. That she was going to soothe away his sorrow and make everything better.
How dare she.
How dare she!
He didn't feel himself move; he didn't feel his legs pushing himself up, or his arm swinging. He did feel his fist push up against Diana's chin, felt her head push backwards. All of this felt as if he were moving in slow motion.
And then time sped up. In one fluid motion, Batman rose onto his feet, swinging an uppercut that nailed Diana beneath her chin. Her head snapped back before the full force of his blow sent her flying headfirst through the air, where she hit the floor hard. For a moment they were frozen, Batman on his feet, one arm raised high above his head, Diana lying in a heap of stunned body parts.
The Amazon was still for a moment before her body shifted. Slowly, she pushed herself up, her arms bracing her upper body off of the floor. She stared at him with astonishment, unaware of the bruise that was forming under her chin. "B-Bruce?" she stammered.
"Get...up," he growled.
"What?"
"Get. Up," he repeated louder, taking a threatening step towards her.
"I don't understand," she said as she began to push herself up fully, though she remained seated. "Why did you hit me?" She hesitated, her eyes squinting for only a moment before they widened. "Bruce, your eyes. They're...red..."
He couldn't take it anymore. Letting out an enraged roar, Batman charged at the murderous Amazon, her eyes widening as his approach. She scrambled to get her legs beneath her, moving into a kneeling stance, her arms rising up in time as he lashed out with a leg. Her bracers took the full brunt of his kick, but the force flung her backwards and up, sending her sailing until her back collided with the wall. This time she didn't collapse to the floor, managing to land on her feet where she retained her balance.
"I said GET. UP!" Batman bellowed, his voice bouncing off of the walls.
"Bruce, this isn't you," she immediately said, no longer looking like an innocent doe, but a battle-hardened warrior. "You need to stop."
"No!" he screamed, jabbing a finger towards the dark-haired woman. "You needed to stop before you laid your hands on her! We're way past that now, Diana!"
"Be reasonable," she tried again, holding her arms out in front of her defensively. "I don't want to hurt you."
You're too late. "If there's one thing you should take away from this, one thing your stubborn, sanctimonious head allows you to, let it be this," he told her.
"Diana, I'm gonna kill you."
Water surrounded him. Fear overwhelmed Jaime's mind, terrorizing him as he gasped for air, only for water to fill his mouth, attempting to suffocate him. His body thrashed around, fighting for survival as he drowned. He was at the bottom of the ocean, being crushed by the pressure and he couldn't...couldn't…
He could breath. Huh.
Jaime went still, just floating in the water and he simply took a breath. Instead of water rushing down his throat and into his lungs, he was actually getting air. In fact, he wasn't even feeling the massive pressure of the ocean. It felt like he was in a swimming pool instead of a couple miles from the surface.
"This is so cool," he said, his voice slightly distorted by the water. He didn't really have to think too hard why he was not the size of a crushed-up beer can—the Scarab was protecting him, allowing him to adapt to this harsh environment.
Now all he had to do was figure out how to swim.
Staring at the sight of Atlantis, he marveled at it splendor. It had probably been thousands of years since anyone had seen this city above the waves. What the people had done to the city to make it survive and thrive was miraculous.
His admiration quickly ended though, when he noticed someone pass through the same doorway he had been kicked out of. Even from this distance, he could make out Aquaman practically jetting towards him, trident in hand.
Oh, yeah, it was definitely time to figure out how to swim.
Immediately, the youth thought of his wings, said wings springing out from his back. He began flapping them rapidly, but quickly discovered that insect wings, while great in the air, were useless underwater. It was at that moment he felt alarmed, especially as Aquaman was rapidly closing the distance between them, leading with his trident to impale the young man.
Scarab! Help! he cried in his mind. We need to move!
As if in answer, he felt something on his back change and the next thing he knew, he shot upward through the water, narrowly avoiding the charging Atlantean King. A trail of bubbles were left in his wake; he wasn't sure how they were made, but he wasn't going to ask questions since they were currently helping him out.
Turning his head around, Jaime saw Aquaman make a U-turn, suddenly swimming upward before he began heading right for the youth again. "Oh man!" Jaime exclaimed before he jetted away, forcing the Atlantean to chase him.
Every so often, the teen would look over his shoulder as he rocketed through the water, always making sure he knew right where his pursuer was. The distance that had originally been shrinking between them had evened out, neither one closing the gap, or widening it. He wasn't sure which one he preferred.
However, this did provide him a good chance at striking back. Turning his body around so that his back faced the ocean floor, Jaime formed his energy blaster, his other hand gripping it right where his forearm should be. "Heeeyaaahhh!" he shouted as he began firing blast after blast at his opponent.
In response, Aquaman began moving to the left and then the right, deftly avoiding the energy blasts as they flew towards him. He didn't seem the least bit perturbed by them either, something that puzzled the boy. You would think if something was inconveniencing someone, they'd at least look annoyed.
And then the blond man pulled back, which confused him even further. Slowly down, Jaime stared as he saw Aquaman just floating there, as if he were waiting for something.
Wait, was he waiting for something?
As it turned out, yes, yes he was. It was the Scarab that picked up on it, sending all sorts of warning into his brain. Jerking his head from side to side, Jaime soon found the mother of all sharks bearing down on him, its mouth wide open, revealing row after row of very sharp teeth.
There wasn't time to do anything, even to scream. The shark plowed into Jaime, biting down with its sharp teeth into him. Or at least that would've happened had it not been for the alien armor covering him. Whatever it was made of, it was apparently shark-proof, something Jaime took great comfort in.
Regardless, he was dragged through the water as the shark continued to swim, not the least bit deterred by this surprising turn of events. Shaking its head from side to side, it tried to cut its way into his body, the teeth scraping against the black and blue armor. Despite the fact there were no punctures, it was still really uncomfortable for the teen as he was shaken like an empty salt shaker. Even if he wasn't eaten in chunks, the pressure by this monster's mouth alone would do something eventually, it was only a matter of time.
And then he slipped in the shark's mouth. It wasn't deeper into its mouth, thankfully, but more to a side. The sound of teeth scraping against his armor was cringe-worthy. However, because of this unexpected turn, Jaime found himself getting a decent look at the monster shark's eye.
Throwing his blaster out, he took aim at the eye and fired an energy blast. There was no wild scream from the shark, so much as the monster letting him go and jerking its head away, its body following after it. Blood poured out of the damaged eye, coloring the water in a stream of red. The youth was left floating alone, watching as the shark swam away, a trail of blood left in its wake.
Well, that hadn't ended too badly.
Suddenly, the Scarab sounded an alarm in his head. By now, he knew not to ignore the Scarab when it did this. Spinning around, he saw Aquaman closing in on him, leading with his trident once more. The young man only had enough time to form a shield with one of his arms before the blond man rammed into him, pushing him backwards through the water. The points of the trident scratched against the shield, much like the shark teeth had done on his body, with about the same result.
And then Jaime's back hit something hard. Gasping, bubbles of water erupted from his mouth, flowing upward. Still, he held his arm in place, not allowing himself to be left wide open for whatever Aquaman planned to do next.
Looking over his shoulder, Jaime found he was pressed right up against the dome surrounding Atlantis. He could practically see the floor from where he was, even with the noticeable crack behind his back. Still, that didn't mean anything if he couldn't fend off Aquaman. He had known the man was strong, but he was really putting his strength into this. The teen could feel the strain and burning in his shield arm. He needed to do something to change this.
C'mon, brain, think of something.
Any minute now.
Now would be a good time.
Pressure hit him, causing his head to smack against the dome. "Give it up, kid, you can't win," Aquaman told him, his voice ringing out surprisingly clear despite the water around them.
Oh yeah, sure, give up and let you kill me. Not gonna happen. Jaime gritted his teeth. He might give up by default if he didn't come up with something to get this guy off of him. He couldn't go forward for obvious reasons—meaning he wasn't nearly as strong as Aquaman—and attempting to go to a side in either direction just might leave himself open. Going backwards wasn't an option either, since he doubted he could break whatever glass the dome was made of…
Wait a sec, there was a crack behind him, right? That had to be because of him hitting it eight seconds ago. Maybe if he hit it right, he could break through? Jaime would've shaken his head after thinking that nonsense idea. Yeah, that would work if he was maybe Superman. This thing was made to withstand the pressure of the bottom of the ocean—what could he do with the Scarab?
Well, actually a lot of things. Maybe the Scarab would have an idea? Putting a call out to it, he waited for it to give him something, anything that could help him out.
As it turned out, it did have an idea.
His free hand moved then, without his direction. Eyeing it, he saw his palm changing, forming some sort of circular panel. In fact, he saw smaller ones lining the bottom of his fingers as well. The hand then pressed down on the dome and he felt vibrations coming from it.
For a moment, he had no idea why this was happening. What were vibrations going to do with a glass dome? Even more puzzling, he could feel the vibrations changing, for lack of a better description. They grew stronger or weaker, almost as if the Scarab were searching for something. It wasn't until he heard more cracking that he realized what it was doing.
The changing vibrations strengths was the Scarab searching for a frequency, constantly adjusting until it found the right one that caused damage to the glass. It seemed it finally found one when more cracks began to form.
Aquaman, however, was not blind to this. From one side of the shield, he saw the blond man lean over, looking behind the youth. "What are you doing?" he demanded.
As if in answer, the dome cave out, a large hole forming as glass shattered. Instantly, Jaime felt himself sucked through the hole as water poured in with him, the same with Aquaman as he followed. While it had seemed like a good idea at the time, Jaime quickly realized just how high they were. As he pulled away from his opponent, his body twisted around as the ground rushed up towards him. The next thing he knew, he hit the floor hard, crying out as water crushed down hard on him. Aquaman landed soon after, his body rolling away after the collision.
Doing his best, Jaime began to crawl away from the torrent of water pouring on him, managing to get out of it. Unfortunately, his body felt battered and bruise, exhausted from what just happened.
Even worse, Aquaman didn't seem the least bit put out. Head tilted up, the youth saw the Atlantean back on his feet, marching towards him with trident in hand. "Do you have any idea what you've just done?!" he roared.
No, not really.
Aquaman stood in front of him, hefting up the trident. "I'll mount your head on my gate, a warning to all those who violate the sanctity of Atlantis!"
Well, that didn't tell him anything about what he had just done, or so the Atlantean claimed. You would've thought Aquaman would've lectured him about it and not leap to the threatening part. Someone needed to teach him about enraged villain speeches.
As much as Jaime wanted to comment about that, however, he couldn't. In fact, he didn't even have the energy to move. The fear that exploded within his gut screamed at him to do something, anything, but he couldn't find it in himself to do more than crawl. He began to tremble at what he knew as to come.
Which was when a ten ton shark passed through the hole in the dome and fell to the floor with its mouth wide open. Jaime didn't know of this, but he did see Aquaman hesitate as he suddenly looked up, just before the shark slammed down mouth first on top of him.
Eyes widening, a burst of energy exploded within the youth and he found the power to scramble to a side, right before the shark toppled over and began thrashing on the floor. Water splashed everywhere as the two separate, Jaime not once looking away.
Did that shark just eat Aquaman?
Yes, yes it had. He didn't see the blond man anywhere and the shark was the only place he could suddenly hide in, not that you would choose to hide in one. Well, that was one way to end a fight.
Suddenly, the shark spasmed, just before something sharp exploded out of its side. No, no way… he felt dismay as he watched in horror as the head of the trident slid from one side to the other, just before Aquaman rose out of the shark's side, covered in blood and guts. This just couldn't be happening. It couldn't!
It was.
Landing on the floor with a sickening splat, Aquaman stared at the prone Jaime. "Look at what you made me do," he growled lowly. "A child of the sea slain by my hand. How dare you make me spill its blood."
Whoa, whoa, what? How did Aquaman get it in his head that Jaime was the one responsible for this? He wasn't the one that sicced the shark on him and ended up getting eaten by it. That didn't make sense at all! Forcing himself up onto its feet, he stared the man down. "Hey, I'm not the one that involved the shark—you did. You're the one that can talk to fish right? If you hadn't call it in, it wouldn't be here. It wouldn't have swam through the hole in the ceiling to eat you either."
"A hole that you created."
"One I wouldn't have made if you didn't pin me against the dome. Take some responsibility, man."
"I lay the responsibility where it rightfully goes."
Meaning he didn't take any of it. Bastardo. No wonder the others were fighting against the Regime. The Regime blamed others for everything and never themselves.
Raising his trident, Aquaman looked as if he were about to attack again, only to point the weapon at the hole in the dome. Electricity fired from the trident and hit the hole, stopping the inflow of water. Looking up at it, some sort of bubble had formed in the opening, much like the one Jaime had been kicked through earlier. Well, at least that stopped them from flooding Atlantis.
"Prepare yourself, boy," the Atlantean King declared then. "This time I'll run you through."
Alright, Scarab, I need your help. Help me take this creep down.
Once more, Jaime felt his body move on its own, though this time he felt calm. The Scarab knew what it was doing and he was going to let it do what it did best. Arms dropping to his sides, his hands extended out and sharpened, becoming his insect-like blades. In the meantime, Aquaman came charging at him, letting out a war cry as he closed the distance between them.
And then the Scarab's legs exploded out of the youth's back, circling around his sides and then shooting forward. The legs collided with the charging Aquaman, slamming into his chest, leaving him stunned as he stopped in his tracks.
Jaime then lunged forward, swiping with his blade-hands. The first blade cut through Aquaman's skin, leaving an angry, red cut across his chest, one that was followed just beneath it by his other blade hand.
With one hand pressed against the angry-looking cuts, the trident-holding hand held out by his side, the blond man hissing from the sharp pain he felt, Jaime then jumped into the air, spinning as he did so. In mid-spin, his blade hands changed, forming two large maces. His foot landing on the floor as he completed the spin, the youth swinging his mace hands from right to left, one hitting his foe against the side of his head and the other his shoulder, keeping the man dazed where he stood.
That was when wings shot out of Jaime's back, even as he reformed his blasters again. Aiming point blank at Aquaman, he began to fire a steady stream of energy blasts, ones that collided with the Atlantean's chest. Wings flapping, Jaime began flying up and backwards, putting some distance between the two.
Seeing that Aquaman was being held at bay, he then stopped firing his energy blasts before forcing his blasters together, forming one larger blaster. Letting out a yell, he fired an even large energy blast, one that collided with Aquaman and exploded, sending the man flying across the room. Jamie wasn't sure where the man landed, but by then he was panting, feeling drained as the adrenaline left him. Slowly, he began floating back to the ground, landing softly as his arms returned to their normal state. He then promptly leaned forward, pressing his hands against his knees to hold himself up while he panted loudly.
That had to do something, anything to put that guy down. If it hadn't, Jaime wasn't sure what else he could do.
He heard a footstep then. Eyes widening, through the thinning cloud of smoke, he jerked his head up and saw Aquaman walking towards him. His chest was burned from the blasts he had taken, but other than that, he wasn't any worse for wear.
Oh, c'mon!
Aquaman didn't say anything, just slowed until he came to a stop. His last step, he stumbled slightly, but that was it. Any other sign on fatigue was pretty damn well hidden, or didn't—
Suddenly, the blond man's eyes rolled into the back of his head. Going limp, he fell to the floor, landing on it hard. For a moment, Jaime just stared in disbelief at the still form of Aquaman. Had...had he actually done it?
Yes, yes, he had. He, Jaime Reyes, the Blue Beetle, had defeated the King of Atlantis.
So freaking awesome.
So...freaking...oh God, he was going to faint from exhaustion.
"You are one of a kind, you know that, Doc?"
Dr. Fate just stared at Enchantress as the witch circled around him. It was like watching a predator stalking their prey, toying with it until it found the right moment to strike. He had a feeling he was the prey in this metaphor.
"I never thought I'd come across you," Enchantress continued, not the least perturbed by his silence. "I mean, if I posed enough of a threat, maybe, but I know I wasn't at that point yet. I needed some more power; not anymore, though."
There was another meaning to her words, he could feel it. "Explain yourself," he said cautiously.
The woman looked pensive at his order. "Well, since it's this late in the game, why not? You see, I didn't join Superman's Regime for the feel-goods. I had an ulterior motive."
"So do most people."
"True, very true. Mine was to get close to the Regime's magic users, get them to lower their guards, and then take their powers. Naturally I would add them to my own and eventually I would accumulate enough power to attract your attention."
Enchantress' face then soured. "Except that the Red Lanterns killed Raven and Shazam never trusted me enough to drop his guard." She then gave Billy Batson a sideways look. "Always too nervous around beautiful women, just like a little boy. But then you came out of your little tower, and fought Shazam toe-to-toe. Not gonna lie, I was getting pretty excited. I mean, the two of you trading spells? It was like watching two master swordsmen slice each other apart. One of you was going to win and would be at their weakest; that was the moment to strike."
"Like a vulture circling a carcass," the sorcerer surmised.
"If you want to put it that way, sure. But now the power of Shazam is no longer with us and you're drained of power. My time has come to take your magic, Fate." Enchantress came to a stop, fully facing him as she held her arms at her sides, green magical energies glowing around her hands.
Swinging her arms up, she pointed them right at Fate, firing a large green beam. Waving his hand, Fate teleported himself at of the blast's path, reappearing by Billy Batson.
"What are you doing?!" the boy exclaimed at the sight of him. Hearing this, Enchantress turned her sights to them, pointing a hand at them before firing another blast. Grabbing hold of Billy, Fate summoned his teleportation spell, whisking them away without a moment to lose.
However, when Fate reappeared, he was no longer in the company of the Batson boy. For his safety, he had been teleported to a safe location, far from this battle, as was his intent.
"Will you stay still?" Enchantress demanded. "Teleport all you want, it won't save you in the end!"
"Only a fool blinds themselves to power," Dr. Fate intoned.
The green-haired woman narrowed her eyes at him. "Really? They how about this!"
Suddenly, green flames erupted all around him, creating a circle. The sorcerer merely gazed upon it, waiting to see what would happen next.
The flames grew higher and higher around him, obscuring the room around him. Though he felt the heat, there was no other harm done to him. With a sigh, Dr. Fate held a hand up and the flames suddenly froze. There was no visible ice, just that the constant movement of the fire stopped in place.
Cracks suddenly appeared on the surface of the frozen flames then. Sharp pops were made before the circle of fire broke apart, pieces of the green flames scattering across the floor.
And then fire blasted into his back, causing Dr. Fate to cry out as he stumbled forward. "Burn, baby, burn!" Enchantress crowed, the source of the flames. Cringing from the pain, the sorcerer summoned up a shield, blocking the rest of the magical attack as smoke wafted up from his body.
Suddenly, a powerful force slammed into the side of his face, causing his head to snap to a side. Another one followed up on the other, jerking his head the other way. The force then rammed into his body, sending him flying backwards, through his shield, though not through flames. It wasn't until his back hit the wall that he stopped.
Before he could bounce off of the wall though, his arms and legs were suddenly pulled from his body, being held tightly against the wall. Physical restraints then grew out of the wall, wrapping around his outstretched limbs, then locked together. He was effectively pinned in place.
"How do you like that?" Enchantress' voice rang out gaily. She was clearly enjoying this. "It's my own design. No one's ever broken my Bonds of Suffering."
"A droll name for a spell," Fate muttered as he looked to the witch, seeing her standing proudly a few feet away.
"You may feel like that now, but you'll love it after my next one." Enchantress then held a hand up, a green orb forming before her palm. "This one's got a bit of a kick to it, but by the time it's done, you won't know what year it is, much less anything else."
The sorcerer would have given her a look had it not been for the helm. He still gave it to her, but she was unable to receive it. Channeling his magic, he then unleashed it onto the wall behind him, the wall suddenly exploded from behind as it sent its debris flying into a previously unseen room. The restraints were still on his arms and legs, but they no longer were holding him in place.
That gave Enchantress pause. "I didn't see that one coming," she admitted.
"Nor this."
Suddenly, a transparent image of Fate slid to one side of him, filling in with color until two of them stood before the witch. But then they divided again into four, then six, eight. Eventually, a circle of Dr. Fates surrounded the green-clad woman, much to her alarm. "What the hell are you doing, Fate?" she demanded as she let her spell fade from her hand, dropping her arm to her side.
Simultaneously, they all raised the same hand, aiming it right at the sorceress. A brilliant light glowed from their palms. Upon seeing this, Enchantress' eyes widened before she enveloped herself in green flames, teleporting herself out of the circle.
Slowly, each Dr. Fate began to fade away, picking up speed until only one remained. Warily, he began walking away from the wall, beginning to float in the air as he rose high above the floor. He expanded his senses throughout the room in an attempt to locate his foe, finding no trace of her. Undeterred, he furthered his search by searching the mystical plain.
There you are.
Tilting his head up, he saw a large, white orb hovering close to the ceiling. It was growing larger with every passing second, just before it descended upon him. Summoning his shield spell, he watched as a transparent blue light appeared between him and the approaching spell. The moment the orb touched the shield, it detonated in a great flash of whiteness.
A distraction.
That was when the floor cracked open, green chains shooting up from the cracks, wrapping around his legs. By the time Fate looked down, he was pulled down onto the floor, and then through it. Rather than sinking into a basement, he was surrounded by darkness, scattered dots throughout the inky backdrop, forming an artificial night sky. Looking down, he saw no end to the chains as they seemed to stretch far into the oblivion below.
And then a hand passed right through him, emerging out of his chest just below his emblem. There was no visible damage, just a forearm sticking out. A strangled gasp came from his mouth as his entire body froze.
"I have you now," a coy voice spoke to him, a presence making itself known over his shoulder. "I was expecting a struggle from you and you did not disappoint, even in your weakened state."
Ah, Enchantress. At least he knew where the threat was now. "You covet my power this much?" he asked, tilting his head to a side. From the corner of his eye, he saw Enchantress' smug face.
"Everyone 'covets' your power, Fate," she told him snidely. "There's just never been someone strong enough, or cunning enough to take it from you. From this point forward, your power shall be my power."
"Then so be it." He did not turn his body, but still he moved. The shape of his back shifted and rippled until it became his chest. Dr. Fate's head no longer stood at an angle as it completely turned a full one hundred eighty degrees, his neck reforming to allow him to stare at her naturally, though Enchantress' arm was still within him, entering through his chest instead of his back. Soon, he was fully facing her, much to the sorceress' surprise.
"If you desire my power so much, then allow me to show you it in its entirety."
The emblem on his chest began to glow before a light shined from it, flowing all over Enchantress. Before she could even move to shield her eyes from its brilliants, she was sucked within, vanishing from sight.
With a gasp, Dr. Fate took in a deep breath. The discomfort he felt from the witch's arm in his body was gone, allowing him to breath better. Tilting his head up, he then closed his eyes. That was just the first part of the spell. Now came the second.
When he opened his eyes, no longer was he in a starry void. Instead, the colors of dark blue, light purple, and pale blue surrounded him, each color continuously fading into each other, darkening and lightening over and over. A tall, skinny rock formation stood in front of him, a stone cage resting at its top. Rock had been made into smooth bars, replacing the steel a mortal cage used. Within it was Enchantress, arms and legs spread out from her body and restrained, much like she had done to him at the Hall of Justice. The woman pulled and struggled against her bonds, but she was no match for them.
The cage began to shrink then, though not because of it was doing so. Instead, Dr. Fate grew bigger and bigger until he loomed over it, staring down on the cage from an incredible height. Lowering himself, he moved until he stared at Enchantress with the entirety of one eye, which made the witch pause in her struggle. "You appear quite small, Enchantress. What keeps you so?"
"I didn't do anything!" she barked at him, though her outrage was a mere shroud for her fear. He could sense the terror overwhelming her. "You're the one that grew fifty feet!"
"Then allow me to part you with enough power to even the playing field." Dr. Fate did not move, merely staring at her with one eye. Just because he did not gesture did not mean nothing was happening though. Enchantress' entire body froze then, ceasing her efforts for freedom. It was her turn to make a strangled gasp as her eyes focused not on him, but of something only she could see.
A blue aura began to glow from her until she began to scream. At that moment, blue light shined out of her mouth and eyes, more bursting from the tips of her fingers and her toes.
"What you are feeling right now is but a fracture of my power," Fate told her solemnly. "If this amount is too much for you, then prepare yourself now: I will be showing you much, much more."
Despite his claim, the witch could not hear him. He knew of this because he had placed one too many people and demons where she currently was. There was nothing she could do, nothing to resist with, or free herself from her bonds. All Enchantress could do at this time was scream.
Whenever Batman had gone up against Diana, he had always given her the first move. She was quite predictable considering she always led with the same attack. He had come up with a plethora of counterattacks to use against her, some to stun her, others to end their fight right then and there.
This time, he led, the red monster whispering encouragement in his ear to do so. Storming towards the Amazon, he rushed the last few feet to throw a vicious right hook at her face, one that she blocked easily with her forearm. Undeterred, he swung his other fist, only for Diana to bring up her other arm and block as well. Seething with rage, the Dark Knight wailed on her, throwing fist after fist, none of which made it past the dark-haired woman's defense. Even more infuriating was the calm look she gave him, as if she were allowing him to attack her. The very thought caused a burning, retching taste to scorch the back of his throat and mouth in fury. He almost wanted to spit it up, but ignored the urge to do so.
Then out of nowhere, she grabbed his next punch by his wrist, stopping it in mid-swing. Shoving it to a side, she took a step forward, coming to stand shoulder to shoulder with him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Diana raise up a hand, fingers pressed together and thumb curled into the palm. Lightning fast, she struck him, delivering a chop to his neck.
Much to his amazement, it hardly hurt. Sure, he felt it, but it didn't have the same kind of impact he was accustomed to when he had spared with her. He knew when the dark-haired woman was holding back and when she wasn't and just now she had controlled her strength. She had been trying to incapacitate him with minimal effort. It was a tactic he had used on her many times; to have their roles reversed was strange.
It then hit the vigilante as to why. The pill he had taken, it had increased his invulnerability to heights he could have only dreamed of. Any light attack Diana could use wouldn't even faze him.
It was time to see what else this pill could do.
All of those thoughts passed through his head in the matter of a second, which left the two combatants standing that way. By then, Diana had noticed something was wrong when Batman hadn't collapsed under her blow. By then, he had moved his foot to behind hers, kicking it back and knocking her foot forward, causing her to jerk to regain her balance.
Pivoting on his feet, Batman spun around until he faced his opponent's unguarded back. Hand balled into a fist, he rammed it until her back, right where her right kidney would be. Instantly, Diana's body spasmed from the blow, causing her to gasp out loud. Encouraged, Batman hammered the same spot over and over, causing the Amazon to stumble forward a step with every hit.
And then she suddenly dropped forward. Before he even knew what was happening, Diana shot her feet out just as her hands touched down on the floor, holding her up over it. Scissoring her legs, her feet crushed down on either side of his legs and then knocked them out from under him. Feeling himself falling backwards, Batman threw his arms above his head, just in time for them to press down on the ground. Bending his elbows to support his weight, he then pushed off the floor, launching himself into a flip, landing on his feet a moment later.
By then, they were both on their feet, turning to face each other in their preferred stances. Diana was giving him a strange look, one that spoke to her confusion. "Something's different about you," she said slowly, trying to work it out in her head.
Oh, yes, there most certainly was. A big part of that was the frail girl lying on the floor, her neck snapped in two. Batman had to swallow that bubble of anger, opting to remain silent. There would be plenty of time for them to...talk. Right after he crushed her skull between his hands.
However, he needed to calm down. If Diana's quick strike had done anything, it had struck him how blindly he had tried to fight her. Anger was ruling him and that wasn't any way to fight a seasoned fighter. He squashed his righteous fury, leashing it. The burning taste in his mouth slowly receded, the enrage voice in his ear falling silent. The red tint the world became began to fade, other colors returning. He could feel his senses returning.
Batman took a deep, calming breath through his nostrils before he threw himself into action. Reaching to his belt, he pulled out one of his few remaining shuriken. Throwing it, he began to run at the Amazon, watching as she moved an arm up before her face, blocking the bat-shaped shuriken and bouncing it away harmlessly.
By then, the Dark Knight had closed the distance between them, leaping into the air as he swung a kick at her head. He purposefully used the leg on the same side as her upraised arm, so that she would keep using it to block him. She did and she felt the full force of that error as his leg easily broke through her guard side, his kick nailing her on the side of the head, sending her stumbling to a side.
The moment he landed, Batman shot towards her, grabbing her now-flailing arm and shoving it out of his way. With his other hand, he drove it into her stomach once, twice before swinging it upwards to land an uppercut to her chin. All of this left her dazed and gasping for air.
Pulling back his fist again, he then slammed it into her face, this time letting her go flying away from him as he released his hold on her arm. He watched as she landed roughly on her back on the floor, skidding across it until she came to a stop.
So this was what it was like having super strength.
One criticism Batman had against his super powered colleagues was their tendency to hit things first, ask questions later. It made rather smart people mere brutes; now he could see why. Why bother using your brain when you could end the threat in a matter of a few punches?
He was going to have to be careful with this.
Diana stirred then, drawing him out of his mind again. Cautiously, he watched the Amazon get back onto her feet, the side of her hand rubbing against her mouth. "This isn't you, Bruce," she said then, her features wary of him. "You are not this strong, this brash. What is happening to you?"
He scowled. "More like what you did to me." He flung a hand out, gesturing to Cassandra's body. "What you did to her."
The dark-haired woman's face hardened. "She killed Kal, our friend. His blood is still dripping from her hands! How do you expect me to let that go without reprisal?!"
"I expect you to apprehend her and let her be tried for her alleged crime," he shot back just as heatedly. "I expect you not to play judge, jury, and executioner."
"I've only done what is necessary! We all have! You would know this if not for Ra's al Ghul stealing you from us!"
"Since when have I ever advocated murder?!" he roared at her.
Diana paused. Then, she slowly responded, "You went out into Gotham, terrorizing his criminals, beating them, breaking them, making them fear you. Can you not see that is what we too have done?"
"It wasn't just the criminals; you did it to activists, regular people. They don't respect you out there, they fear you'll come for them and kill them!"
"How is that any different from you? Regular people were afraid of you as well." She shook her head, her hair brushing against her shoulders. "Can't you see? All of this we did just as you had."
Batman stared at her agape. She was still saying it was about him? Inspired by his protection of Gotham? He then scowled. "If that is true, that this was in my name...if I were truly dead I would be rolling in my grave."
His words struck her harder than any blow he had landed on her thus far. Diana was stunned, mouth opened, eyes uncomprehending. Raising his hands up, he wrapped one over the fist of the other and cracked his knuckles. "But you're too self-righteous to see that, aren't you?" he continued to press. "If that's the case, I'll just have to hammer it into you until you understand."
Those words shook her out of her daze. "If you do this, I will not hold back. You will fall at my feet."
"I rather like my chances," he spat back. "Our strength is just about equal now, so that leaves skill, and between us, I have the upper hand."
"You have no idea what you speak of," she seethed. "Centuries of warfare, battle tactics, and hand-to-hand combat have been instilled in me since I was but a girl. I am the pinnacle of Amazonian teachings. Whatever skill you have cannot best that."
"Last I checked, I've beaten those teachings. Twice by my count."
Diana narrowed her eyes. "That was when you ambushed me. Now we stand in front of each other, no surprises, no nanites, no electrical fuse boxes. You will be defeated, Bruce, on this I swear on my pride as an Amazon."
"That's nothing to be proud of!"
It had been something he has seen since the first moment he laid eyes on her. Diana's pride as an Amazon was unrivaled by any arrogance or ego he had come across. It was because of this that she looked as if the wind was knocked out of her. "What?" she sputtered out. "Why would you say such a thing?"
He sneered. "Let's look—and I mean really look—at your people, Diana. They live on island isolated from the world and why? Because they were hurt once. A man did something so horrific to them that they ran away from the world, hid away in Paradise, and whined to each other about how evil men were. Is that what an Amazon warrior does? Is that worthy of being praised for? To be proud of?"
Rage blossomed on Diana's face. "How dare you belittle my Sisters' suffering! You have no idea of what you speak!"
"Really? Let me guess: violation, betrayal, their whole world torn asunder. They were broken and weak, begging for help when none came. Does this sound familiar? It does to me because I've felt the same way."
"Liar," she snarled at him.
"How would you know?" he shot back. "I know because those were the same feelings I had when I watched as my parents were gunned down before me. I know these feelings because that was all I could feel for all of the years that followed. And you know what? I did exactly what your Amazon sisters did and hid away from the world, shutting myself out from it, and wallowing in my despair."
"Then where do you get the gall to criticize them?!"
"Because I came back," he responded bluntly. "Unlike them, I went out, bettered myself, and I went to change the world, so that no other child experienced what I did. What did the Amazons do? They stayed on their island for millennia without any inclination of leaving. If it weren't for you, they never would've set foot off that island's shore. Face it, Diana, you respect a bunch of recluses that have bad-mouth men for ages. Like a girl fresh off their first break-up, they locked themselves in their house and sniveled to their girlfriends about how evil their ex is. You might as well give them a gallon of ice cream and they'd complete the cliche!"
An enraged scream rang out, Diana launching herself at the vigilante. Batman held his ground as she rapidly closed the distance, drawing a fist back and throwing it at the last second to crush his face.
He had been expecting this. Though his words were admittedly cruel, he knew they would enrage Diana enough to make her lash out rashly. She was too good of a fighter for them to trade blow after blow like he had done with Superman; on top of that, while her powers were without end, his was limited to the effects of the pill. Time was not on his side.
Darting to a side as he turned his body to face her side, he held up a forearm in the event she tried to perform a backhand swing on him. Due to her speed, there was no way he could launch a counterattack, so he instead let her sail past him without harm, continuing to turn his body to keep her in front of him.
Diana didn't go too far as she twisted herself around and lunged towards him. This time he began backing up a step, throwing his arms up as he blocked fist after fist as Diana threw them at him. She kept aiming for his head, never once deviating even as he shoved her fists to a side with his forearms.
Then he changed tactics and caught one of her fists, followed by catching her other a second later. Holding on tight, Batman leaned his head back before throwing it forward, landing a headbutt to her forehead. Her head jerked back from the blow and she stumble back a step, the vigilante releasing his grasp on her fists to let her.
Physically shaking her head, she scowled at him before she rushed him again, throwing another punch. Immediately, Batman jumped to a side, spinning as he did so. All the while, he drew his own fist back, swinging it in time to take advantage of the circular momentum he was generating. By the time he completed his spin, his fist was rocketing towards Diana's face, slamming into it while her own punch hit only air.
Unexpectedly, a dazed look appeared on the Amazon's face, a wobble in her step as she moved backwards. Everything about her was jerky and completely unlike her. Seeing this, Batman hopped forward, placing all of his weight on one leg as he drew up on leg. With his profile to her, he leaned to a side and lashed out with a side kick, her foot ramming into her chest and sending her flying backwards.
Even though she kept on her feet, the bottoms of her boots skidding across the floor until she stopped, Batman scowled at her. "C'mon, Diana, I know you can take more than that. Or is this all an 'Amazon warrior' can muster?"
Anger returned to her face and she began to rush him again. This time, however, in mid-run she leapt into the air, spinning much like he had done previously. Her speed was faster this time and he barely caught sight of the backhand she swung at him. It hit him before he could even move to block, the back of her fist slamming into the side of his face, causing his head to snap to a side.
The moment she touched back on the floor, she used the same fist to ram a punch into his face, knocking him back a step. Pressing her advantage, she drew back the same hand and threw it forward again.
This time, Batman jerked to a side to avoid it. Changing tactics, Diana then leapt into the air, swinging a kick for his head. Throwing his arms up, he wrapped them around her extended leg the moment it collided against him and used her momentum against her, swinging her around in a circle before he arced her upward and then swung her down hard onto the ground.
Diana grunted from the impact, but that was all, head snapping up, teeth bared, she drew her free leg up, her knee reaching her chest before she kicked out with it. Seeing it coming, Batman released his hold on her other leg and jumped back, avoiding the blow.
That was when the dark-haired woman used one of her other powers, specifically flight. Had it been Batman, he would've had to physically move himself to get back on his feet. For Diana, she floated rapidly off the floor, getting on her feet in half the time it would've taken him. Again, she was throwing a fist at him, one he blocked, only to have another punch coming at him from the other side. Again, he blocked that, but quickly found himself just holding both of his arms up, as Diana swung her arms over and over, throwing the same punches. Considering his forearms were practically at her bicep, it was like she was just flinging halfhearted slaps with the entirety of her arms
And then she brought an arm closer to her body, swinging it low and then up, ramming her fist into his stomach. The air in his lungs were forced out of his lungs. Part of him reprimanded himself for not seeing that coming. It was an old boxing move, punching at the same area so that an opponent put all of his defenses there, only to leave themselves open elsewhere.
That was when Diana grabbed onto his cape at his shoulder, holding him close to her. Once, twice, three times she slammed her fist into the same spot of his gut, backing him up a step with each blow. Teeth gritting, though the pain was noticeably dampened, he still felt like he was getting beaten with a baseball bat. It seemed Diana had given up all pretenses of restraint and was trying to hurt him.
Seeing the next punch coming, he then shot a hand down, his palm colliding with her wrist and stopping the fist. All the while, he pivoted on his heels, turning the side of his body into Diana's. That was so that he could jerk his blocking arm up, bending it at the elbow so that his elbow could ram up against her chin. The unexpected blow knocked her back a step, which he held back from striking. His stance limited what he could actually do and it was best not to purposefully put himself in a position to be overwhelmed. So he held his ground and turned to fully face his foe.
That's when he saw it. Right by Diana's foot was one of the bat-shaped shuriken he had thrown at Superman earlier. The Kryptonian had dodged them earlier, which left quite a few scattered throughout the room—this was one of them.
Holding an arm up so that Diana could see him, he then raised his other hand and pressed a button on his gauntlet. The Amazon immediately saw this and hesitated, trying to figure out what he was doing. This allowed a red light to begin flickering from the body of the shuriken by her foot until it went completely red. A moment later, it exploded, the blast throwing Diana up into the air.
In an instant, Batman pulled out another shuriken, activating the bomb with in it. Swinging his arm, he sent it flying at the dark-haired woman's helpless form, the projectile reaching her in mere seconds. It didn't even need to touch her for it to detonate, the blast sending her flying straight down to the floor.
Immediately, Batman took off running, leaping high into the air as he sailed through the air and then down towards her. By then, Diana had pushed her upper body up off the floor, just in time to see him closing in on her, his cape billowing behind him. She was helpless as his boot struck her shoulder, pushing it down onto the floor, where he felt bone break and splinter beneath his foot. A pained scream tore out of the Amazon's mouth as her shoulder was shattered.
This did not stop her from retaliation, however. With her still useful arm, she punched at him, only for the Dark Knight to catch the fist. Holding on tightly to it with one hand, he swung his other one out wide before driving it right into her elbow. The force caused the arm to bend inward before snapping the bone, part of it breaking through the skin as a jagged piece stuck out. Again, Diana screamed.
Finished with her arms, Batman then hovered above her, both legs straddled over her body. Lifting one leg, he then dropped down to her level, slamming his knee into her chest, which ended her scream, a choked gasp escaping her lips. One hand shot out and wrapped around her throat, his fingers squeezing down as she began to gag. Pulling back his other hand, it hovered by his head, a calm, steady fist, ready to strike.
Batman's face darkened as he raised his fist again, holding it high so that Maroni could see it. For a fleeting moment, he wanted to. This man's arrogance disgusted him to no end. He knew the Italian's history from beginning to end and not one part of it redeemed him in the slightest.
He wanted to do it. His entire body shook as he felt the urge to break every bone in the man's face. His raised fist trembled in its place. And then he relaxed.
He couldn't do.
It had been a long time since he had loomed over Salvatore Maroni, a trembling fist raised. He could practically see the mobster staring up at him with wide eyes, right where Diana was now. The only difference between then and now was that his fist no longer shook with restraint, if not revulsion at the thought of beating a man to death. This time his fist was steady, just waiting for the moment it would fly down and crush bone and sinew. It was no less than what she deserved.
Cassandra looked pleadingly at him. "I know that if you were going to stop him, you would have to kill him and I couldn't let you do that. I couldn't let you taint yourself."
It hit him like a ton of bricks. This...this was what Cassandra had meant. This is what she had wanted to spare him. The thought of killing, of murder was whispering in his ear to get it over with, to finish Diana off once and for all. That monstrous voice was back, gentle, urging. It was tempting. Was this what could have possibly happened if his fight with Superman had dragged on any further?
By now, Diana could see the hesitation in his face. "What are you waiting for?" she asked, not the least bit afraid. "What stays your hand?"
Out of instinct, he tightened his grip on her neck, to the point he could feel her carotid pulse beating against his fingers even through the gloves. He stared down at her, wondering why he had never seen this side of Diana, this casualness when faced with life and death. It sickened him. So he answered her with all of the disgust and seething he felt towards her.
"She wouldn't want me to."
Then he swung his fist down, slamming it against her forehead. The back of her head bashed against the floor, causing a spider's web of cracks to spread out in all directions. Her eyes were shut, a trickle of blood leaking from her nose and down her cheek. Even through his gloves, he could still feel her carotid pulsing, albeit slower, but clearly that of a woman knocked unconscious.
"That's the only reason you're still alive."
Releasing her, Batman tilted his head up, staring up at the ceiling. For a moment he stayed that way until he felt an urge well up and bubble up his throat. Face twisting, he let out a yell of rage and self-loathing, hearing it echo throughout the room. There was no telling how long it lasted, but when he stopped, he could feel a raspy sensation in the back of his throat.
His eyes returned to Diana, who had yet to stir. Scowling, he reached back to the back of his belt, and took hold of what felt like coils of rope. Pulling it out, he held the Lasso of Truth, it coils beginning to glow in his hand. Without a second thought, he began tying the Amazon up with it, rolling her around and tying knots until he was positive she wouldn't be getting out of magically-imbued rope.
Standing up, he then deliberately turned his back on the Amazon. Walking away, he made his way to another still body, that of Cassandra. Kneeling down, he pulled the girl's body onto his lap, resting her head against his shoulder. She looked so frail, so broken.
It was too much.
This time he didn't scream. He didn't lash out. Instead, he pulled his mask off, Bruce Wayne looking down at his charge. He could feel tears trailing down his face, but he made no move to wipe them away.
The last attack Jaime uses on Aquaman is based on his ultimate attack in Injustice 2. It felt like the best way to end that fight and I think it came out rather well.
As for Batman's last words to Diana before knocking her out, those come from The Bourne Supremacy, when Jason Bourne is recording a dirty CIA director about his involvement in a government conspiracy. I always did like those lines and they really worked well here.
To the first Guest reviewer: I suppose you can say this chapter had all three fights.
To the second Guest reviewer: Some serious shit happened.