A.n I own Nothing
Woooo 50 Chapters. Such a Milestone. Thanks to everyone who supported, read, reviewed this fic. Also to those who keep sending me reviews complaining about the first few chapters and how Alucard is such a wuss in them I have a response...SUCK IT UP PRINCESSES.
He's weak at the start for a reason and would know that reason if you read past the first few chapters. Stop sending me messages that are nothing but complaints about the first 2-3 chapters. Read the Whole Story, there is a little thing called STORY TELLING...you know that thing that keeps people interested.
Also for those of you who complain about the Leauge and others being Out of Character in the same first few chapters...tough. It's called Fanfiction. This is my fic and I will do whatever I dam well want with it. Don't Like it...Don't Read it.
For my readers who have read up to this point, I apologise for ranting. I get a lot of nasty reviews for the first few chapters. Mainly complaints about Alucard and the spelling and grammar. A lot of them are poorly written and with way more grammar and spelling mistakes than in my chapters. As I was saying, you guys are great...you know what I might post this rant on the first chapter too since that is where most of the complaints and poorly written reviews come from.
Anyway as Always Please Review.
See the end of the Chapter for annoucments.
Batman drove his Batmobile at High speed, after leaving the Metropolis Hospital, he remotely accessed the Bat-Computer for Jon Dee's files and details surrounding his arrest. He was hoping to find some sort of clue as to where the Dream Walker was hiding. Dee's profile contained everything Batman needed.
Jon Dee was a creature of habit and didn't do anything new. He had a set schedule for both work and his social life with very little deviance. With this in mind, it limited the places Dee would go. Batman eliminated Dee from hiding out with friends or relatives, since most of his social life involved public places and the odd bar, and all other extended family lived in other cities. Batman knew that Dee would not be at his home, as it was under his now-deceased ex-wife name.
Which left his place of work? The Wearhouse that he had worked as a security guard when Dee was caught and arrested. Batman hoped that Dee would be there, it was still being used by Lex Corp but is now being used to house parts and other bits and bobs that Lex corp used to manufacture their products.
Security had been stepped up around the Wearhouse too. Though Batman was not worried about that. What he was worried about was that it was getting harder and harder to focus on the road, he was so tired.
When he stopped at a red light, he could not help but close his eyes just for a second. The moment he did a voice filled his head.
"You're getting sleepy, it's only a matter of time before you come into my realm," Dr. Destany said with a hint of excitement.
Batman snapped his eyes open and looked around. He was still inside the Batmobile at the red light.
"Where are you?" Batman hissed.
"I am right next to you," Dee answered "you just can't see me yet,"
"How are you talking with me, I'm not asleep?" Batman demanded.
"Not yet, but your mind is close…looks like if you're tired enough I can speak comminate with you…interesting,"
"You sound surprised,"
"I don't know the extent of my powers, I only just got them after all," Dr. Destiney claimed.
Batman looked up at the Lights, they were still red.
"Your friends are still trapped by the way," Dr. Destiny taunted "You know considering they are Earth's greatest heroes, they are easy to break. They scream so much, beg for mercy and for someone to save them. It makes me wonder if you will too,"
"J'onn and Alucard will save them and protect them from you," Batman hissed.
"Really? How sure are you of this?"
"J'onn is the most powerful telepath in the universe and Alucard is never to be underestimated,"
"I admit they are both nuisances, but I have already taken care of them," Dr. Destiney claimed "Or should I say your friends took care of them,"
"Your lying," Batman responded "You're bluffing. I bet they are both kicking you out of every member of the Justice Leagues heads,"
"How do you know that?"
"I know the criminal mind, you're trying to distract me and get under my skin by telling me this," Batman declared "well it won't work, not even Joker or Scarecrows Scare Gas could do that,"
"You know nothing about me," Dr. Destiny hissed.
"No…but unlike you, I am learning," Batman smirked.
The light turned green and Batman pressed down on the accelerator and the Batmobile sped off.
J'onn had no trouble getting into the minds of his friends, he had decided to start with Superman's nightmare. Believing that the man of steel would be able to help convince the other members that they were trapped.
Unfortunately for J'onn, he discovered that in Superman's dream the last son of Krypton's powers got too strong for him to control and J'onn found Superman destroying Metropolis. Given the amount of power the man of steel possessed it was a valid fear. However, with some convincing J'onn was able to get Superman to understand and convince the man of steel to accept J'onns help.
Surprisingly it did not take much effort for the Martian to wrest control of Superman's dream from Dr. Destany. The villain hadn't put up much of a fight and just left when J'onn gave control of his dreams back to Superman. It worried J'onn that something else might be going on, but he didn't have time to dwell on it and pulled Superman's subconscious along with him as he entered the next nightmare.
The next dream J'onn entered was Flashes. This one had been a little harder as Dr. Destany had made everyone frozen except for flash. When J'onn and Superman entered the speedster's dream they too became frozen.
Seeing his friends come to help him and only be frozen made flash despair over the fact that he was too fast for even his friends. However, when Dr. Destany gloated about the fact that Flash would never interact with anyone again. Flash realised that Dr. Destiny was right, he was fast.
Flash knew that his powers made him the fastest man alive and that he needed to accept that. He would always be faster than everyone else, but that didn't mean he couldn't pace himself. After a few deep breaths, Flash had regained control time started up again. Superman and J'onn were proud of him and the three got ready to fight the Dream walker, however once again Dr. destiny fled without a confrontation with the League.
J'onn wondered if Dr. Destiny was a coward by nature or if he was planning something else. Before he could voice his concerns, a red door opened in front of them, and Alucard and wonder woman walked through. Wonder Woman looked very pissed off.
"You are awake," Alucard said in relief when he saw the three members of the Justice League. He then looked over at Superman and Flash "and you've woken the others too,"
"Technically they are still asleep, I am just taking them with me into the other dreamscapes," J'onn clarified.
"Does that not put a considerable mental strain on you?"
"Not as much as you think," J'onn claimed "I am curious as to how you are traversing the dream world though,"
Accused held up the Dream Stone "With this," he answered.
J'onn nodded. He remembered what Batman had told him, this stone must be the magical artifact Batman had told him about.
"Hey, guys, welcome to my head," Flash smiled and gave both Alucard and Wonder Woman a friendly smile "where the double ice Mocha espressos never stop flowing…also we have free wi-fi,"
"Wi-fi?" Alucard asked.
"Yep, with unlimited data too," Flash joked "and the broadband connection is as fast as me,"
Alucard gave flash a blank look. He had no idea what Flash was talking about.
"Ignore him," Superman interrupted "did Dr. Destiny get you too?"
"Yes, Alucard helped me overcome him," Wonder Woman claimed.
"Dr. Destiny's actions concern me; every time control of the dreams are returned to one of the League members. He does not fight or tries to retake control. He just leaves," J'onn stated, "has that happened to you?"
"It did," Alucard confirmed "perhaps his hold weakens the more he has trapped,"
"Then GL and Shy are in big trouble," Flash claimed.
"Indeed, it is possible every time we wrest control, someone else who is still under his hold gets worse," Alucard theorised "Though I am glad you have all been freed…but we must make haste to Hawk girl and Green Lantern,"
"Agreed, Lantern was next," J'onn stated.
Alucard turned away from the League and held out the Dream stone. It glowed bright red and created a doorway, once the door was stable, he and the others walked through. When they emerged, they found themselves in a massive cityscape, though the buildings were tall and circular and very alien in design. Alucard looked around, the city itself was not in a good condition but at least it wasn't burning this time.
"Where…. are we?" He asked. Alucard did not recognise the city and the designs of the buildings were nothing like he had seen in his explorations of earth…not that he had explored many cities.
"I am unsure," J'onn answered.
"I think this might be Oa," Flash responded. The rest of the League looked at him confused "It's home to the Green Lanterns, GL comes back here like twice a year,"
"What makes you so sure that this is Oa?" Wonder Woman asked.
"That," Flash said and pointed to a large building. It was a dome-shaped building that had once stood proud. However now only half of it remained standing and inside was a humongous green Lantern power Battery. A massive beam of green energy was coming out of it and shooting upwards into the sky.
The League made their way to the Central Power Battery as fast as they could. With Alucard, J'onn, and wonder Woman flying and flash running on the ground. However, the closer they got the League noticed that bodies of different alien species began to litter the ground. None of them were human but all were wearing the same Green lantern Uniform that Jhon did.
When they arrived, they found their friend, however, he was not surrounded by the familiar green aura, this time there was a mix of red and yellow. His uniform had also changed, the left half was yellow and the right was Red. The symbol on his chest was now half of them both Red and Yellow Lantern corps. A red and yellow power ring sat on each of his hands.
"HA HA HA…THAT'S RIGHT YOU WEAKLINGS, COME TO ME. COME AND MEET YOUR DEATH!" Jhon laughed manically. His voice filled with rage and hate. The League watched as several Green Lanterns flew towards him only to be cut down by constructs made out of both red and yellow rings.
"FIRST OA AND THE GREEN LANTERN CORP AND THEN THE WHOLE UNIVERSE!"
"We need to stop him, GL would never do something like this," Flash urged.
"Remember this is not real, we need to reach Lantern and free him from Dr. Destiny's control," J'onn reminded the group.
"Lantern dreams of destroying his people?" Wonder Woman asked in shock "Hera how can this be,"
"Isn't it obvious?" Dr. Destiny asked. The group turned and saw that the villain was standing beside them. They all jumped back and got ready to fight.
"What do you mean? What is Obvious?" Alucard demanded.
"Exactly what I said. Your friends' powers make him feel so alien," Dr. Destiney clarified "he fears that earth will reject him and is expecting it,"
"We all have powers, he doesn't need to feel alone," Superman shot back "Well…all except Batman,"
"I am not talking about you, I am talking about the friends and people he cares about in his home neighbourhood," Dr. Destiny claimed "he fears how his time in space, the Green Lantern corp and with the Justice League will make him so alien he will no longer be part of earth…or something along those lines at least,"
The League looked at each other, they had no idea that Green Lantern felt that way. Though since the ring gave him incredible power and made his eyes different, they could understand.
"You know I planned to exploit those fears, but it turned out better,"
"You are still killing him though," Alucard shot back "you are still keeping him trapped in the nightmare,"
"Yes, but that's all I'm doing, I can't take credit for this scenario," Dr. Destiny said. He then turned to look at the rest of the League. "But I can't let you get to him either," He then lunged at the Justice League.
Metropolis
The Batmobile screeched to a halt just outside a shipping yard belonging to Lex Corp. The big L logo was displayed for all to see, so any passer-by would know who it belonged to and why they should keep walking.
Batman hopped out of the Batmobile, as he approached the gate, he noticed that the lock had been severed before he arrived. Batman looked up at the shipping yard. The massive amounts of shipping containers stacked up hi would make it difficult to find anyone in. However, Batman's research had stated that Dee worked in the warehouses and not in the overall docking area, which meant there would only be three warehouses to check.
He pushed open the gate and entered. It did not take him long to find the warehouse that Dee was most likely in, after all, only one of them had signs of breaking and entering. As Batman entered, he glanced down at the sleeping security detail. No doubt Dees doing and from the uncomfortable and scrunched up faces; they were likely having horrific nightmares.
Despite that Batman continued and entered the warehouse. As he did, the warehouse changed from the standard shelves and stacked boxes to that of a broken-down house and Batman found himself in a long dark corridor. The sound of slowly dripping water echoed throughout the hall.
"Hmm…Alucard's Castle is still creeper," Batman thought to himself and he continued to walk.
"You shouldn't have come here," a voice filled echoed around him. Batman froze and got on guard, alert and scanning the hall for the source of the voice.
"You see the closer I get to a person the more my powers can affect them," Dr. Destiny said and his face appeared in a mirror nearby "I can get into your head even if you're wide awake,"
"My head is not a good place to be, enter at your own risk," Batman said. Now he knew that Dee was talking to him directly to his mind, he didn't need to be on such high alert. Dee had to be close.
"Oh really, well I hope you don't mind if I don't heed your advice,"
"Your funeral," Batman responded and started to hum a tune. He kept humming and the direct house around him began to fade in and out. Revealing glimpses of the true warehouse.
"Wait…what is that…what is that song?" Dr. Destiny demanded. He tried to materialise but found he could not maintain a physical form near the dark night.
"Catchy isn't it," Batman smiled "I heard it on tv and it's been stuck in my head for the last week. The funny thing about mental powers, if a person has a strong mind then they can easily block any mental invader out with nothing more than a tune or a thought,"
"You're saying my enhanced mind is weaker than yours?" Dr. Destany shouted angrily.
"Well, you're no Martin Manhunter that's for sure," Batman stated.
"Why do you try to help them, they walk all over you. You don't have powers, you and I are not so different,"
"Oh no Johnny, you and I are completely different," Batman said "I may not have powers, but unlike you not having powers doesn't make me weak. It makes me the most Dangerous member of the Justice League,"
Dr. Destiny growled and withdrew from Batman to rethink his strategy, clearly acting creepy and pulling mind games were not going to work for this member.
Green Lanterns Dream
The Justice League was fighting Dr. Destiny in Green Lanterns mind, this was the first time he had tried to comfort them in combat and so far, the Battle was not in the League's favor. While the Dream walker had complete control over the dream world and was able to give himself any kind of power he desired. The Justice League teamwork and experience was more than a match for Dr. Destiny.
The problem was that he had called Green Lantern for help, and John had agreed, seeing the League a threat. So, whenever the League looked like they were going to finally take the Dream walker down, Lantern swooped in and hindered them. Green Lantern normally was an extremely powerful foe, but now he had two rings of different colours that fed off his anger and fear that Dr. Destiny had brought to the surface.
Another factor in this fight was while the League had no issue punching out Dr. Destiny for everything he had done. They were extremely hesitant to fight their friend and that gave John the advantage. Every time the League looked like they had the upper hand, John would swoop down and blast them in the back. Between the two, it caused the Justice League to hide amongst Oa's rubble and regroup.
"This isn't working," Superman said "We have to try something else,"
"I will distract Green Lantern…you all need to focus on forcing Dr. Destany out of Lanterns mind,"
"You can't fight John on your own. He's too powerful, and Destiny's making him even stronger," Superman argued.
"Besides, if you hurt him too much in his dream, you might do irreparable harm to his mind," J'onn added.
Alucard knew that J'onn was right, meddling in people's dreams was dangerous, even more so if you harmed the dreamer in their mind. But if they did nothing then they would never drive Dr. Destiny out and Green Lantern would die.
"I'll get his attention," Alucard said, he stood up and flew out of the Leagues hiding place and headed straight to where John was still rampaging and blasting every bit of Rubble, he could see in an effort to draw out the League.
"Lantern…you need to stop this and let us help you," Alucard called out "This isn't real, you are being manipulated, and if you don't stop you will die,"
John stopped what he was doing and turned to face Alucard. "sure, I'll stop, I'll stop when you're all dead," John yelled angrily and unleashed a powerful beam of both Red and Yellow energy.
Alucard moved to the side and let the beam pass harmlessly by him; before he took off flying away from the enraged Lantern. Angered that Alucard had dodged his strike and was still alive, John snarled and chased after him.
Dr. Destiny noticed this and was about to call the enraged Lantern back but was cut off by Superman punching him in the face. He gave a confident smile.
"Fine, I can deal with all of you first," Dr. Destiny said. He then grew to a massive size that would even surpass the tallest skyscraper. "You were always above me and the rest of humanity, now I am above all of you,"
"Not Quite," J'onn said and he altered his body to match Dr. Destiny's size. The two clashed, their sizes sending echoes and shockwaves across the planet.
"Quick, give me your Lasso of Truth," Flash urged Wonder Woman. The Amazon gave him an odd look. "I want to pull a Hoth," Flash smiled.
Recognition flashed over both Superman and Wonder Woman's eyes and the Amazon handed over her Lasso of Truth to flash.
"We'll keep Destiny's eyes of you," Superman said before flying towards Dr. Destiny with Wonder Woman by his side. Superman and Wonder Woman flew up under Dr. Destiny with high speed and tighter they delivered an uppercut under the Dream walker's chin. This not only allowed J'onn to deliver a powerful blow of his own. But Flash took the opportunity to wrap the Lasso around his feet and tie it off.
Unable to hold his balance Dr. Destiny fell and crashed to the ground. The League smiled at their apparent victory however Dr. Destiny started to laugh.
"You think you've beaten me, your wrong," he laughed. His cloak suddenly came alive and split apart into several large snakes. They slithered up and around the justice League, binding them and wrapping around their necks. The League struggled but could not
"Don't you see, it's futile to resist me in here," Dr. Destiny said confidently as he reverted to his normal size and stepped out of the Lasso of Truth. "Out there you are gods, but in here…you are ants. I let you run around but no more,"
Suddenly a large explosion was heard and a massive column of Green Energy erupted from the ground and shot up into the sky. Dr. Destiny turned away from the League and looked towards the sky in shock.
The distraction was enough to allow J'onn to focus his mind and the snakes faded away, turning into torn cloth. Releasing the League. Dr. Destiny turned back, ready to take on the Justice League once more, however, he never got that chance. A burst of green energy hit him in the back, it was so powerful that it threw him past the League and slammed into one of the ruined buildings.
Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and J'onn turned to the source of the beam and saw Green Lantern standing there. John was no longer in the mix of Red and Yellow corps uniforms but in his original green lantern uniform, and he did not look happy.
"This isn't over, you haven't won yet," Dr. Destiny said and he melted away. Finlay withdrawing from Green Lanterns Dream.
The League let out a sigh of relief once the dream walker was gone. Green Lantern looked at the League in confusion. "Does someone want to tell me what the hell happened and why we are on Oa?" he asked.
"It's not real, it's a dream," J'onn answered and then gave a quick and brief explanation of what was happening.
"So, the one non-powered prisoner we don't follow turns out to have powers, and he's trying to kill us in our dreams?" Green Lantern asked in disbelief "are we in the matrix or something?"
"Sort of. But man, I wish I made that joke earlier," Flash sighed "Missed Opportunity,"
"Matrix?" Alucard asked.
"I'll explain later, but how did you get GL back to normal?" Flash asked.
"I drew him over to the gigantic dead Lantern and used the Dream stone to restore it," Alucard answered "The beam engulfed him, and then he was back to normal,"
"How did you know that would not have destroyed Lantern's mind?" J'onn asked.
"Green Lanterns are powered by will are they not. I Theorised that he would have the will to break through Dr. Destiny's manipulation if he had access to his rings power source…turns out I was right," Alucard explained.
"This is great and all but where is Hawk Girl?" Green Lantern asked. Noticing that Hawk Girl and Batman were the only two members of the Justice League not around.
"We haven't got to her yet, we should hurry," J'onn stated "Once we do the whole League will be free of Dee's control.
J'onn closed his eyes and focused, creating a passage into Hawk Girls' mind from Green Lanterns, it worked and a door appeared. However, as the League approached, they discovered they could not pass through it and that it was like a solid wall.
"You will not enter here; my power is greater now that you have freed all but one. I will come for you all eventually. One after another, she will be the first to die and Batman will follow," Dr. Destiny's voice echoed throughout the area.
"Batman is not asleep though," Alucard argued.
"Not yet anyway. But I will make him sleep and when he does, he will never wake up again," Dr. Destiny's voice claims and faded from the dream.
"We need to get to Hawk Girl now," Wonder woman
"We can't, something blocking us from entering Hawk Girls dream," J'onn explained.
"Let me do it," Alucard said. He held up the Dream stone and it glowed and the door turned red. Alucard tried to enter but he only got his arm halfway through the door before he too was blocked and thrown out.
"It's not working, the stone is being blocked somehow," Alucard claimed.
"Is Dr. Destiny doing this…is he still here?" Flash asked and looked around for the Dream Walker.
"No…its Hawk Girl herself," Alucard stated "I might be able to force my way in…but that would likely result in damaging her mind,"
"How the hell is she blocking out both J'onn and your magic?" Green Lantern demanded.
"We don't have time to figure it out," Wonder Woman said. She flew up to the door and started to punch it over and over, hoping to breakthrough. Superman joined her and when that didn't work Green Lantern used his ring to pour green energy into the door in hopes of destroying whatever was blocking them from saving hawk girl.
"This isn't working…our only option may be to defeat Dr. Destiny in the real world," Alucard urged.
"That will take too long to find him," Green Lantern argued.
"Batman is already working on locating Jon Dee," J'onn assured "we will need to assist him,"
"The Castle…I can locate him with my castle," Alucard claimed "You all have access to it now…I could take you there, find Dee and then we can go straight to his location using the Castlevainas transport room,"
"Then what are we waiting for? J'onn how do we wake up?" Superman asked.
"Simply wanting to wake should send your minds back to their bodies," the Martian answered.
Superman nodded and closed his eyes, he tried to focus on waking up but nothing was happing. Wonder Woman, Flash, and Green Lantern are also tired. But after a few moments, they discovered they had not moved and were still in Green Lanterns' dream.
"Um I can't wake up, why isn't this working?" Flash asked.
"He's right…I can't wake up either," Wonder Woman said.
"Wait, did Dr. Creepo trapped us in GLs dream?" Flash asked.
"How he's gone," Green Lantern pointed out.
"He has, but…oh no," J'onn whispered.
"What is it?"
"The medical tubes…. they are keeping us asleep," J'onn realised.
"What do you mean?"
"They were designed to induce relaxation and a sleep-like state, to make it easier to perform medical exams and…"
"and?"
"And it keeps them that way until told to wake the patient up," J'onn finished.
"How the hell did we wind up in the Watchtowers medical tubes, to begin with?" Green Lantern.
"Batman and I brought you there…he programmed them and I repeated what I saw him do," Alucard admitted.
"How long did Batman and you program the tubes for?" Wonder Woman asked.
"There was no time limit," Alucard answered.
"Which means the tubes are keeping us asleep until someone tells them to wake us up manually," Flash realised.
"And if Dr. Destiny is now going after Batman…" Wonder woman trailed off.
"Well, we're screwed," Flash said.
"But I woke up with no problem," J'onn claimed "Why did the medical tube not keep me asleep?"
"I…didn't program it too," Alucard admitted "Your tube wasn't active…you were just lying in it. Batman told me to wake you first…so I didn't bother turning it on,"
"Then what are you waiting for? Go back and wake us up," Green Lantern demanded "while you're at it, go, help Batman,"
J'onn and Alucard nodded and both faded from the rest of the Leagues' sight.
Watchtower Infirmary
Alucard's eyes snapped open and he sat up, he glanced over at J'onn who was also beginning to wake up. The Martian blinked a few times and then looked down at Alucard. They then turned their attention to the rest of the League; they were was sleeping peacefully in the medical tubes and a quick glance at the monitoring instruments told them that their vitals had calmed down significantly and were close to getting back to normal.
All but Hawk Girl, who was extremely erratic and her tube's instruments were flashing red. It was clear that her time was almost up.
"Go, I will take care of the others," J'onn ordered and he raced to Hawk Girls' side.
Alucard nodded and cast the return spell; Disappearing into the pillar of black flames. The second he returned to his castle a single thought was all it took to for the castle to connect the room he was in and his father's private study. flung the door in the transport room open and raced up to the Mirror of Shadows.
"Show me Jon Dees location…NOW!" Alucard demanded.
The floating shards immediately merged forming a large mirror and true to its masters will the image of a dark room filled with boxes was shown. Alucard saw Jon Dee fighting Batman, Dee held a syringe filled with some kind of liquid and was trying to stab Batman with it but the Dark Knight was holding him off.
"Where is this?" Alucard demanded. The image zoomed out and a warehouse in Metropolis was shown. Once Alucard had the location he raced back to the transport room and activated the castle's magic and once again disappeared in a Collem of fire.
When he arrived at the Wearhouse he raced through the storage facility, focusing only on the two more active Heartbeats. Alucard tuned out the hearts of those who were already asleep. He did not know which heartbeat belonged to Batman and which belonged to Jon Dee. As he rounded a corner Alucard nearly froze. A heartbeat had slowed to a near stop and now matches the guards outside.
Someone had fallen asleep and the other Heartbeat was leaving the building.
He picked up the pace and prepared to use the Dream stone at a moment's notice. He knew Dr. Destiny had it out for Batman and Alucard refused to allow the Dark Knight to suffer at the Dream walkers' hands. If Dee escaped, he would go into hiding and likely try to kill the League the next time they fell asleep. And this time he would ready for both J'onn and Alucard's attempts to stop him.
Alucard came to the back of the Wearhouse and found that several large creates had been knocked over and broken open; the evidence of a fight was clear. He moved the boxes out of the way, and found the body of Jon Dee, on the floor in a deep sleep with an empty needle in his hand. Alucard breathed and let the relief wash over him as he stared down the man who had nearly single handily wiped out the entire Justice League.
Batman had defeated Jon Dee. Dr. Destiny would fade from Hawk Girls' mind, she would live. Her vitals would calm down and she would recover and be back to fighting crime and threatening Flash in no time.
Alucard thought back over the night's events, it had been a busy night, and allowing Batman to face had essay been the riskiest part of the Dark Knights plan to deal with the villain. Alucard knew that Batman had been as tired as the rest of them but Dee's powers could not be fought on one side. He needed to be stopped in both Waking and Dreamworlds.
Had the Master Librarian not gone against his orders…had the castle not sensed something was wrong. Dr. Destiny would have succeeded in killing the justice League and Alucard. Alucard made a note to make sure to reward the old man in some way. Perhaps he could convince the League to donate some books or something for him to catalogue.
Once Alucard composed himself again he looked around the dark warehouse. Batman was nowhere in sight; the Dark Knight was very good at blending into shadows…for a human anyway. But Alucard's vampire eyes allowed him to see perfectly in the dark. The shadows could hide nothing from him in the shadows. However, Batman was not visible to his sight.
Alucard glanced upwards, looking at an open skylight. His keen vampire hearing caught the sound of a familiar engine coming to life. He flew up and out of the open skylight and looked over towards the road. He was just in time to see the Batmobile pull out of the storage facility and race off into the night.
Alucard watched the car disappear with a slight smile. He then floated back into the warehouse and landed in front of Jon Dee and looked down upon his sleeping form.
"Do not think you will get off easy," Alucard said in a dark tone.
He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a Crescent moon-shaped charm. He then bent down and put it around Dee's neck. Once it was secure, he picked Dee up and flung him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Alucard whispered the Return spell and he and Dee disappeared in a column of black fire.
Unknown location.
Joh dee moaned and he looking around he was in some kind of black room. There were six black candles lit and he felt floaty. Looking around he could only catch slight hints of red banners and he swore the shadows and darkness of the room shifted. Like they were excited somehow.
"Oh my, my lord he's awake," an older voice said.
Dee turned to the source of the voice and saw the Master Librarian standing next to him. His eyes went wide with fear as he remembered what the old archivist did when he was in the dream world.
"Good and here I was beginning to think that we would not have an audience," a second voice said from the darkness. Unlike the librarians, the second voice was smooth and soft-spoken with a darker tone. Alucard emerged from the Darkness "Hello Jonathan Dee," He said.
"You," Dee gasped. A cocky smile formed on his face "you have guts facing me again, I won't let you escape me again," Dee started to concentrate, he expected the room to change, to once again enter Alucard's mind and torment him from within. But nothing happened. The librarian let out a chuckle.
"Wait, I can't enter your dream…why aren't my powers working?" Dee panicked.
"Because you are not technically awake," Alucard answered as he moved to stand next to Dee's side "Nor are you attached to your body,"
"I don't understand," Dee said. Alucard raised his right Index finger and moved it in a circler motion. Dee flipped onto his stomach. His eyes widened in fear as he stared down his own unmoving body. It was lying in some kind of circle with a pentagram drawn in the centre. He didn't have a shirt on and was sprawled out like he was being used in some kind of ritual sacrifice.
"What…what is this…what did you do to me?" Dee panicked. Alucard rotated his finger again and Dee once more flipped over, now facing Alucard.
"I merely had the castle separate your mind and spirit from your body…do not worry, I will have it put back when it is finished with you," Alucard promised with a creepy smile.
"W…W…What are you going to do to me?"
"Now that is the question isn't it?" Alucard responded as he started walking around Dee's spirit with a predatory stalk "My castle is very angry at you for what you did,"
"I had thought about letting the castle drain your life away, or even letting it do whatever it wanted to you that would end with your eventual death by the most painful means possible…but then the Justice League does not tolerate such monsteras actions and it is currently in my best interest that I remain on their good side," Alucard stated "So fear not…I and the Castle will not be killing you,"
Dee breathed a sigh of relief.
"But then I realised that if I just took you to prison…you would try to kill us all again and I can't allow that either," Alucard continued "besides, Death would be too lenient for you,"
Fear and Panic settled in Dee's soul. "B…B…But you said you wanted to stay in good standing with the League…if you hurt me in any way that would put you in jeopardy,"
"Only if they find out," Alucard said in a dark tone. Dee gulped and Alucard moved to look down at Dee so his head was directly above his. Dee could see the anger in Alucard's eyes and the dim candlelight it made his face quite scary "Besides, I won't be doing anything to you…the castle will,"
"The castle?"
"You see Dee, this castle is alive…and like all living things it has needs and emotions. Now my castle may not show it but it has…urges shall we say,"
"Urges?"
"Oh yes, like the urge to rip out your still-beating heart and show it to you so your pain and fear will be the last thing you ever see…or the urge to keep you here and have you been my castles stress toy for all eternity,"
"I voted for that one," the Liberian spoke up.
"As the Lord of this Castle I have final say over what my Castle will do to you…and I have decided to give you a taste of your own medicine," Alucard finished and he straightened up. He gave a slight hand signal and the Liberian stepped forward, pushing a trolly that held various medical tools, a bowl of hot water, and dray three dry white towels.
"Do you know what a Nightmare is?" Alucard asked "and I am not talking about bad dreams,"
Dee frivolously shook his head.
"A Nightmare is a Creature of the night…they are mental predatory parasites who feed of happiness, good experiences, and memories. Leaving their victims devoid of such things," Alucard explained, "They enter their victims and feed on them through their dreams…sound familiar?"
Dee's eyes widened.
"I have decided to bind such a creature to you, so that every time you fall asleep it will feed on you. It will show and leave you with horrors of your own making. It will do to you what you did to myself and the Justice League 1000 times fold,"
"No…you can't...you can't do that…I'll be…"
"You will be left a screaming dribbling mess that will not survive the first hour," the Liberian finished for him. His voice held a hint of amusement. As if the Idea of Dee suffering the same fate, he had planned for the Justice League brought him great happiness.
"You are correct…I can't do that. But my Librarian can," Alucard grinned "but that is not he all he will do," His creepy smile growing ever bigger.
"As I said Death is too lenient for you…So the Liberian proposed a marvellous Idea. We are also going to carve a spell into your flesh…right here," Alucard grinned and pointed to the spot above Dee's heart. "This spell will draw good experiences, memories, feelings, and other positive sensations to you. You will feel them and experience them as if they were your own,"
"The more people around you the more Experiences you will draw in," the Liberian continued "You will experience lifetimes of positive emotions,"
"And then the Nightmare will feed on it all, you will never be free of this creature, your mere exitance will constantly provide food for it and no matter what you do…you will be unable to stop it,"
"If you ever wake up from the drug that you tried to use from Batman then the Nightmare will feed when you next fall asleep," the Liberian stated.
"No…please…don't…I'm sorry…" Dee begged, if he was in his body he would be crying.
"Not yet you are not, but you will be," Alucard snarled. He made the same greater with his finger again and Dee's spirit flipped again so he was facing downwards. Alucard then looked at the Liberian "You may begin now…just do not kill him,"
The Liberian gave a slight bow to Alucard as the vampire turned and walked towards the shadows; presumably where the door was.
"Wait…your leaving?" Dee cried out.
"Of course, as I said I need to stay in good standing with the Justice League…and not being here gives me plausible deniability,"
The Liberian picked up a scalpel off the trolly and set to work. Dee immediately started to scream as the old man-made deep incisions in his chest. As the sound of two heavy doors closing somewhere nearby was heard.
"Oh, did I forget to mention your spirit will everything we do while we work…including cutting you open and the pain of the binding ritual?" the Liberian asked with glee "Our mistake, but fear not…like the master has promised you shall not die. But I am sure you will wish he had given you that luxury,"
Alucard walked through the halls of his Castle, trying not to think about the pain that Dee was currently going through. He would need to call Death and ask the Reaper to bring him the Essence of a Nightmare. preferably one that was very temperamental and very hungry.
There was another reason that he was not going to participate in Dee's punishment. While Alucard was very knowledgeable of all manner of dark secrets and particularly Dark Magic, he was not as well versed in performing this kind of ritual nor was he confident that he would be able to do it successfully. This type of binding ritual required expert knowledge of both the dark arts and that of the human flesh and soul. While Alucard understood the fundamentals and theory behind such rituals, he had never performed one himself. His father didn't allow him to ever participate in such rituals when he was younger. And his mother had been very adamant that he focuses on learning how to heal the body through medicine and science; not Surgery.
He was supposed to learn such practices when he was older, but neither his mother nor father had lived long enough to teach him. He had, of course, studied the human body, and his vampire senses allowed for a great advantage when it came to identifying and treating any kind of illness and he could treat superficial wounds easily enough. But healing through opening up a body was something beyond his skill set. It was why he had let J'onn take Batman back to the tower when he got injured hunting Morgan Le Fey.
He didn't have the knowledge or skill to help Batman other than telling J'onn where he was injured. Just like he didn't have the skill to pull of such an elaborate ritual now. He would arrange for Death to bring him a Nightmare from Hell, but that would be all. Everything else would be left to the Master Librean who knew exactly what to do and would do it perfectly.
Plus allowing the Castle to extract some revenge on Dee via the Master Libreain should settle the castle back down. Alucard worried when the castle became restless, it was never a good sign. Even his father had been wary on the odd occasion it acted out, but right now it was furious.
As Long as Dee lived Alucard would be content with however slow and long this ritual took. After all weaving, not one but two spells into a man's flesh would take some time. After about an hour the Librean finished the first part of the ritual. Dee's body was now ready to house the Nightmare, but Alucard wanted the second spell to be completed before the binding, so there was no chance of Dee dying before the second spell was complete, and the Librarian was only more than happy to oblige.
With the Dream walker's chest open the Libreain reached in and pulled out the man's beating the heat. Dee was in so much pain and had repeatedly pleaded and begged the librarian to stop throughout the procedure. However, upon seeing his own heart removed from his body was too much.
"H…H…How…." Dee struggled to say.
"Magic," the Liberian stated like it was obvious. The Liberian then took the scalpel and used it to begin carving the second spell directly onto Dee's heart. The spell that would draw all things positive to Dee.
"Please stop…Stop," Dee begged. He was in so much pain, he knew it had only been about an hour but it felt much longer than that.
"I don't know what you're talking about," The Librarian stated "I'm not doing anything to you,"
"You carved my chest open and ripped my heart out," Dee claimed.
"Oh, on the contrary Jonathan dee…you brought this upon yourself," the Libran stated and pushed a little harder on the scalpel while infusing his designs with subtle amounts of magic; Making Dee scream once more.
This continued for another 45 minutes but once Dee's heart had been successfully replaced, Alucard returned with a horse's skull that had a glowing purple flame. The Librarian completed the binding ritual. The effects were instantaneous and Alucard eyed the archivist's work.
"Make sure that no mortal eye or technology can ever detect what we have done," Alucard ordered.
The Librarian nodded and waved his hand over Dee's chest. The scars faded from sight as if Dees' brutal punishment had never happened.
"My lord do be aware that any user of the Mystical Arts will be able to feel the spells and if they are halfway decent the spell Aura may be traced back to the Castle,"
"I know, that is why I did not participate in the ritual. I cannot have this be traced back to me, if someone were to try trace the spells it will lead them to the bottom of the ocean. Hopefully they will believe it was an Atlantian…at worst…they come down here and the Castles curse kills them,"
"Either way you remain free of suspicion,"
"Exactly,"
"I see. Should I erase his memories of this too?" the Librarian asked.
"No…he will keep those. They will serve as a reminder of why he should stay out of people's dreams," Alucard stated.
The Librarian nodded. Alucard bent down and picked up the slumbering Jon Dee, he headed for the Transport room with full intentions of returning Dee to prison. He would hand over the last escaped Criminal tell the warden how the League had defeated him and apologise for the inmates' late return claiming they needed a bit of extra time to recover from Dees mental attacks.
Not a complete lie but not the whole truth either. As long as Dee was returned the League would never know what had happened in the castle and Alucard planned on keeping it that way. Should they ask, Alucard would tell them he had taken some precautions to limit Dee's powers so he would be unable to make an attempt on the Leagues' lives again and leave it at that.
Gotham City
Batman was perched on a rooftop, overlooking his city. It had been a reasonably quiet night in Gotham. So far, he had only stopped three robberies and four gang fights. He sensed someone approaches him from behind and let out a sigh; looking over his shoulder to find that Alucard was standing behind him. The dark knight turned to face the vampire but raised an eyebrow. Alucard was not focused on Batman, instead, he was looking towards the sky and around the environment as if he was searching for a threat that was hiding.
"What are you doing here?" Batman asked.
Alucard froze and turned his attention to Batman.
"I…I am checking," Alucard answered.
"Checking for what?"
"I need to be sure Dr. Destiny is truly defeated and has no hold on you,"
"Who?"
"It is what Jonathan Dee called himself in the dream world…that and god,"
"Dee? But he's…." Batman trailed off. He then noticed that Alucard held the Dream stone in his hand and realisation set in. He let out a frustrated sigh "This is a dream isn't it," No wonder Gotham had been so quiet.
"Yes," Alucard answered "I found him asleep in the warehouse…Batman what happened,"
"Dee had a vile full of sedative. He planned to use it to put me to sleep,"
"Sedative?" Alucard asked.
"A medical drug that knocks people out within seconds,"
"Ah…Did he inject you with it?"
"No, he Jabbed himself with it during our confrontation," Batman claimed "I must have fallen asleep after the fight,"
Alucard nodded, if that was the case then Batman was simply exhausted.
"The others, are they alright?" Batman asked.
"They are still tired…and Hawk Girl has yet to regain conciseness,"
"Is she…did Dee kill her?"
"Worry not, Dee failed. Hawk Girl's vitals were the worst out of all the Justice League as neither J'onn nor I could enter her dream to help her. Fortunately, you defeated Dee before she was lost to us,"
"That's a relief, so she's just taking longer than the others to come round then,"
"That is the case, J'onn believes she will wake up before morning until then he is monitoring her condition," Alucard explained "and I have delivered him to the proper authorities," he added with a smile "I do not believe he will be attempting to enter our dreams again,"
"Good…very good," Batman responded "Where exactly did I fall asleep?"
"A chair in the Watchtower infirmary,"
Batman nodded, he remembered reaching the watchtower. He couldn't raise the tower on the way as he assumed J'onn was still in the process of waking the League up from the Medical tubes. He didn't remember falling asleep but given how exhausted he was that was too expected. At least he made it to the infirmary, Flash and Superman would never let him live it down if he collapsed in the hallway.
"Would you like to be moved? Surly the Watchtowers would be more comfortable," Alucard offered.
"Have Superman do it," Batman responded. If Batman was going to sleep at the watchtower then h would do it in his room.
Alucard nodded and looked around. He noted how the city of Gotham looked the same in Batman's dream.
"Is your city like this in real life?"
"No, it's far worse in real life. You said Dee was calling himself Dr. Destiny. That sounds like a name Flash would come up with," Batman huffed "what does that even have to do with the dream world or his powers?"
"You are asking the wrong person…anyway he is not in your mind, so I will leave you to be," Alucard said. He turned to leave.
"Alucard," Batman snapped. Stopping the vampire from leaving. He turned back to look at the dark knight and Batmans' gaze turned towards the red stone in his hands.
"That stone lets you control dreams correct," Batman spoke up.
"Yes…but I would never use it in the manner that Jonathan Dee did," Alucard assured "In fact, I plan to give it back to the Librain for safekeeping…encase Jonathan tries again someday,"
"Can you use it once for me? There is something I have wanted to do for a long time, but it can't be done in real life. Could you use the stone to make it happen in my dreams?"
"As long as it will not put you in danger," Alucard agreed
"it won't,"
"Then what do you wish your dream to be?"
Batman told Alucard what he wanted and as the vampire listened a soft smile formed on his face. Once Batman had finished Alucard used the stone to re-shape Batman's dream to what he had requested and once it was done the vampire left.
"It is done," Alucard said.
"How long will this last?" Batman asked.
"Until you wake…but do try and remember that good dreams are equally as difficult to wake from as bad," Alucard warned "if you have not woken in 48hrs, I will return to wake you,"
Batman nodded and he watched Alucard fade from his dream. Once the vampire was gone, he jumped down from the roof into his Batmobile and drove off.
Justice League Watchtower,
"Your back, is Batman okay?" Superman asked with great worry the moment Alucard woke up again. The vampire had returned to the tower after dropping Dee of in Prison. He was glad that the rest of the League had woken up and were moving around, minus Hawk Girl.
However, when he arrived, he saw that Batman was asleep and Superman as well as the other League Members insisted that Alucard check Batmans' dream for Dr. Destiny.
"He is fine…Dr. Destiny has no hold over him," Alucard assured.
"That's a relief," Superman breathed.
"Batman wishes you to move him to a bed here in the tower…I assume he has a room, yes,"
"He does, but Batmans a light sleeper. Won't he just wake up?"
"I would not worry, he is just having a good dream," Alucard smiled.
Superman looked at Alucard confused and then looked back at Batmans' sleeping form. Wondering what the vampire meant.
Batmans Dream
Batman drove the Batmobile up to Wayne's manner. However, this time he didn't bother using the secret entrance to the Batcave. Since this was a dream there would be no point. He got out of the car and walked up to the front door.
The manor's lights were on and they were shining out the window. Batman took a deep breath and opened the door. Inside was a feeling of warmth, something his mansion had not held in a long time. He could smell the scent of hot roast and various spices as he walked through the halls. Heading for his destination.
Batman opened the door to the dining room and his eyes widened in shock at what he saw. The table was filled with all kinds of various dishes, candles lit, and glasses placed in front of plates and three places set.
A man and a woman stood by the table and looked over at him with big warm smiles. Batman could not believe it; they're standing in the dining room waiting for him was his mother and father.
Thomas and Martha Wayne
"There you are son, dinner is ready," Thomas smiled "Your mother was just about to have Alfred start a search party,"
"Thomas does stop, we both know it was you who was worried," Martha laughed.
"I just don't want the food to get cold,"
Batman smiled and he stepped into the dining room. The moment he did, his costume disappeared. He was no longer Batman, the Dark Knight who relentlessly pursued his version of dark Justice. No, he was a small 8yr old boy in his pyjamas ready for a family meal with his parents. He ran up to his mother and gave her a big hug, taking in every detail he could. The feel of her clothing, the scent of her favourite perfume, and the loving warmth of her touch.
"Well, someone is affectionate tonight," His mother smiled "not that I am complaining of course as there is nothing more than I like than giving my little boy a hug,"
Batman knew this was a dream, but it felt so real. After his parents had died, his 8yr old self had often wished for just one more night with them. One more family dinner, where it was just the three of them. It had been impossible at the time of course, but now Batman was getting that wish.
"Alucard…thank you," Bruce whispered.
"Who's Alucard dear, a new friend?" Martha asked confused. She was sure she had met all of Bruce's friends from school and none of them were called Alucard.
"Yes," Bruce answered softly "A very good friend,"
"Well, you should invite him round for dinner sometime. I would love to meet him,"
Bruce looked up at his parents with adorable child eyes.
"I have other friends I would like you to meet too," he said "7 in total, including Alucard. Can they come to dinner too?"
"Of Course, son, your mother and I would be happy to meet as many friends you make," Thomas readily agreed with a warm smile.
"Agreed, we'll invite them over for dinner next weekend," Martha proposed "but for now. Let's eat,"
Batman nodded in agreement. He wondered what his parents would think of Justice League. Had they still been alive Bruce had no doubt his father would have supported them and probably become a fan. His mother's proposal to have the whole team meet next weekend would never come, after all, this was a dream and Bruce was determined to enjoy it while it lasted.
Without wasting any more time, he ran over to the table and took a seat between his mother and father and they began their dinner together.
It may be a dream but this was a good Dream. One Bruce was content to have.
A.N
All Right guys this wraps up the Only the Dream Arc. The next chapter will be a filler chapter to address one or two things in the aftermath and set in motion some very important events. The next Arc will be my favorite Arc of the Justice Leauge Cartoons: A Better World.
For those of you who don't know the names of the JL Arcs, this is the one with the Justice Lords' evil Alternate Dimesonal counterparts of the Justice League who took over their earth and rule it with an iron fist. In order to save their own world, the Justice League will have to face the most powerful and dangerous foes they will ever face...themselves.