Warning: This chapter might contain emotional trauma, blood. And anything else that can get too emotional. And violence too.
Readers discretion is advised.
Victor Fries is reviewing his notes on his desk in Gotham City. There, he watches the sun rising. It was the first time he felt at peace. The first time he felt warmth. All those years of feeling the cold. He felt free.
Free of his goal, free of his desperation and obsession. Not only he gets to work on medicine for fatal diseases. Especially the most incurable diseases he is determined to subside on the patients needed.
"Victor, you have been up and running at 5AM in the morning. Have a latte." The first face he gets to see in the morning is a pale-blonde woman with ice blue eyes. It was the face he had yearned to see. His wife, Nora Fries.
"I am sorry if I worried you, Nora. It's just that... " Victor felt tears threatening to burst from his eyes. But he tried to hold them off for her sake. "The face that brings me joy in the morning is you. It brings me the motivation to cure the incurable diseases to help anyone who cannot afford in the hospitals." Victor replies.
Nora leans down and kisses her husband on the forehead. "Victor, don't push yourself too much. I know you're determined, but you need to worry for your health too. How about breakfast in the kitchen?"
"I'll join you for a few minutes, my love." Victor assured her, and kissing her hand. Nora then opened the door and left for the kitchen. "Okay, don't take too long." Nora reminded him. But doesn't mind if her husband is a bit busy. But worries he might get stuck on working. He might forget to eat, or to sleep. That's one of the cons of being a scientist.
Victor cannot help but feel how much happy he is to see his wife, alive and healthy. Her love, her touch, how much he missed all of it. But something about the morning sunrise isn't feeling right.
Like for some reason, he didn't feel like himself. Nor that any of it was real. Like it was just a dream. Still, it's the one dream he will never wake up from, as long as Nora is here, and with him.
Earlier in Star City, Dinah Lance, also known as the superheroine, Black Canary, had been seeing a patient who is said to be the most troublesome. Being a therapist is one lf her occupations aside from being the girlfriend of Green Arrow, daughter of a police chief and vigilante.
"June, how have you been feeling today?" Asked Dinah. June Moone, a brown haired girl with green eyes and in a vine color shirt and grey pants, was laying on a couch. Distressed with baggy eyes.
"Tired. I cannot bring myself to sleep." June said in a groggy voice. She touched her own forehead and felt hot. Staring at the ceiling, not looking at Dinah.
"I'm sorry to hear that. Is there any reason why you never sleep at night? Is there something bothering you?" Dinah asked as she wrote down some notes.
"Nightmares..." June then covered her eyes as she breathed heavily. "They are getting too much... I wanted them to stop." She sniffed as her emotions are threatening to burst out.
"Nightmares? What kind of nightmares? And are they this bad?" Dinah asked.
"Everyone dies... my parents... my friends... my boyfriend... they all called me a monster. I don't know why... When I get scared or angry... I blacked out..." June began, not sure what to explain.
"When I woke up, the living room... it was a mess." June said. Her eyes began to blur as tears came out. "My parents... they're scared of me. They always back away from me. I have to go to my room to eat dinner. The same thing happened in school, when others my age picked on me, and I also blacked out. The same outcome happened again. It's like the world is angry at me. It's like I can't even live anymore. Then there's a voice."
"What is the voice you're hearing, June?" June rose her head up as she looked at the floor. Drops of tears began to splat to the floor.
"It's okay, June. Just take your time. Remember, everything you say and feel stays in this room. And it also stays confidential. Your parents, nor anyone didn't have to know unless you want to." Dinah assured her.
June then hears a whisper in her head. It was dark, raspy, and cruel. "No... stop..." She then feels pain in her head. Dinah was observing while being careful to keep June calm.
"June?" Dinah asked as she gets up from her seat. And takes a box of tissue to give to her patient. "Shut up..." June snarled.
"June, it's okay. Just take a breather." Dinah tried to talk to her calmly. But it was proven futile as June snapped her eyes and her feet stomped down to the floor. She can hear words of insults and hate towards her. Then a hooded woman whispered to her ear.
"Just say my name."
"What a loser!"
"Go near her, and she will go crazy!"
"Here comes June the mouse!"
"She always bring bad luck!"
"Or even better! June the witch!"
"Say my name. Say my name."
"Who are you calling a witch?!" Her eyes glowed white, a wave of energy has speard and exploded the wall in front of them. Dinah was taken aback. But being fellow teammates with a sorcerer to the Justice League. Dinah wasn't going to let that bother her to to help June with mysterious powers.
"Ahh!" June screamed as her head throbs with agony.
But before Dinah could say anything, June fell to her knees and was rendered unconscious. But Dinah caught her and tried to talk to her.
"June? June?!" Dinah tried to wake her up. But June wasn't responding. While still holding onto her, Dinah gasped to see blood trickling from her eyes, "Oh, god." Strangest of all, there are dark vines growing om her skin, June breathes heavily and sweats rapidly like a fever running fast.
Not standing by, Dinah then grabbed her phone. To dial for help.
At the Watchtower, June was taken to the informary room. Dr. Fate uses his magic to examine an illness. A sorcery kind of illness.
"I have seen possessions and spiritual illness. But never have I seen this occurrence before. She is fighting against her inner darkness. A creature that plague her with nightmares." Dr. Fate examines.
The team, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Artemis, Superboy, Robin, Zatanna and Miss Martian, and Wonder Girl gathered after hearing the situaion. "We're here." Aqualad began.
"What's the situation, Black Canary?" Asked Wonder Girl.
Zatanna cannot even look at Dr. Fate. Even if they are on the same side, she cannot forget the terrifying memory of her father being taken for being the host to the helmet.
Then they turned to the girl laying unconscious on the bed. Zatanna gasped. Robin caught her as she nearly fell back.
"Zee, you okay?"
"That girl. I know her. Is this the reason why you called, Black Canary?" Asked Zatanna as she turned to the therapist/vigilante.
Black Canary explains by showing June's phone with a lost of contact. And one of them was Zatanna. And figured they know each other. For some reason, neother had spoken to each other for a long time.
"How long you two know each other?" Asked Wonder Girl, concern for the wellbeing of the unconscious girl. Sensing some darkness in her. Wonder Girl was told by her mother that she has a gift to sense aura.
"We used to attend school together before she moved to Star City. What happened to her?" Asked Zatanna.
"She was in a therapy session with me. She said something about hearing voices, and yelled. The next she blew up the walls and passed out. Then there were stange veins growing on her skin." Black Canary explains.
Zatanna recalls being 10-years-old at the time, when she and June explored an abandonded castle for a school trip. But after entering a cursed chamber, June saved Zatanna after pushing her out of the way, but at the cost of her free will after a vengeful spirit took possession.
"Her aura, it was darkening somehow. Such sorcery taking adventage of the emotional state of that girl. Those with selfish desires would try to bring down those at their weakest hours. Dr. Fate is right about one thing, it is a spiritual crisis." Wonder Girl adds. "We got to help her before things get any worse."
None of it happened until now. That's one explaination Zatanna might have to hold off for now. They used to be best friends, until June and her parents moved to Star City.
To her horror, the vines on June began to slowly grow.
"Maybe I can try to read her mind. Just to see if she can respond. Or wake up." Miss Martian stated.
Superboy stopped her. "Hold on M'gann. We're don't know if it can work."
"Conner, I'm only trying to..."
"I know. But I think there is something screeching. On her." Superboy points out. He knew his girlfriend meant well. But the chance of the cause of the illness June is going through, it might prevent Miss Martian from telepathically communicate with her to wake her up. "Maybe we should wait until we figure the cause of this." Superboy points out, trying to be patient.
Miss Martian agrees. Not sure either if it might risk the girl's life to use her powers. Or it might scare her into a massive panic attack.
"Scanners shows that the temperature reaches to... 200 degrees Fahrenheit?! That is above the average temperature of a regular fever."
Then June gasped as she feels more pain. Robin then sees her hand turning black as ink. "Hey, her hand!"
"June, are you okay?" Zatanna asked. But the nightmares, whatever she is seeing. It made it impossible to hear whoever is talking to her.
"June? Can you hear me?" Zatanna asked again in concern for her former friend. And another horrifying thing to add to the list, her skin is turning pale, as if she hasn't sleep or eat in days.
"Her parents came to me the other day for how June hasn't been eating or sleeping for days. It's got to have something to do with the nightmares. A magic kind of nightmares." Black Canary explains.
"Perhaps if we can enter her mind, and find the source. Destroy it, and she'll wake up." Aqualad theorizes. But this suggestion just brought Miss Martian in hesitation since their last mind training exercise. The last time they have done it, Miss Martian forgot this was part of the training, and thought it was all real. The thought of her friends being gone is a nightmare for her that is hard to forget.
Then the alarms blared inside the Watchtower. The team entered the control room to find every League member fallen unconscious. "What's happening?! What's going on?!"
Black Canary and Dr. Fate had fallen as well.
"It's like it's happening every second! I... Why do I feel so tired?" Kid Flash was the first to the Team to fall.
"KF?" Robin questioned. But before he can try to wake him up, Robin also collasped in an instant. Zatanna then tried to shake him awake. "Robin? Wake up."
Zatanna then sees dark vines on Robin's back neck. It was similar to the one's June was infected with. "No, this can't be!"
Superboy then held onto Miss Martian as she feels a fever as well. "M'gann!"
"Can't stay awake... Why is my head feeling hot?" Miss Martian then fell asleep in Superboy's arms. Superboy also falls with her.
Aqualad tries to resist, but then his legs feel weak against his will. Grasping onto the table before knocking over a coffee cup after falling too.
Wonder Girl breaths heavily. Trying to use her aill to fight her sleepiness. She sees her arms growing dark vines. "No, I can't give up! Not at my worst! I have... to fight it... have to... I'm an..." Wonder Girl then collapes to see her friends asleep. She felt weak, and feels useless because she was never born an Amazon. She could hear voices pf pity from her past. "... an Amazon."
"I'm worried though. The queen isn't going to forgive herself if anything happens to Donna."
"She can't survive this. She is not even born an Amazon."
"I know you can fight. But Everything you need is on this island."
"Donna, the World of Man isn't safe. You're not like the rest of us."
Author's note: Here we have the mystery behind the merge between two realms. Staring with June having mysteriously been infected by a nightmars creature.
Sound familiar to you when watching Ice Queendom in RWBY franchise?