SIX: A Friend In Need
I don't think any of us attempted to go back to sleep that night. I watched the security cameras that were still functional. Damian locked himself in the training room armed with his sword and his mother's dagger. Kara stayed alert and in the kitchen, giving us both some space.
I was about to switch cameras when I saw something unexpected. A portal opened and two bodies fell out of the sky. I zoomed in and was shocked by what I saw.
"Zee!" I cried.
Zatanna Zatara was wrapped protectively in the arms of someone I didn't recognize. He was bloody and looked half-dead. She was bruised and visibly injured, but she looked a lot better than he did.
"She's alive... Zatanna's alive..." I told myself. I was half terrified that I'd fallen asleep after all and this was only a dream, but then I saw Zatanna saying something. A few seconds later, they vanished off of the camera and reappeared in the Bat Cave.
"Zee!" I shouted. I ran to her and flung my arms around her."You're alive... You're here..."
"I'm here, Dick," she confirmed as she hugged me. "And I need your help. Where's Batman?"
That did it. Every wall I'd built shattered at once. I started to cry in her arms.
To her credit, Zatanna immediately understood. "Oh, Dick... I'm so sorry," she said softly.
I forced myself to focus. "You're hurt... And so's the blonde guy."
"His name is John Constantine," Zatanna explained. "He saved my life by opening a portal to Hell. From there, we went to a pocket realm where time moves differently. It was our best chance to survive, especially John... He used the last of his strength to hide us there... But he's lost too much blood, even with time moving slowly... He's dying, and the spell broke."
"He saved you, so he's good in my book. Let me see what I can do." I ran and got the first aid supplies. "Kara! I need you!" I called upstairs.
Kara raced down to us. She looked startled to see that I wasn't alone. "How did they get in?" She asked as she started helping me tend to Constantine.
"Zee has Magic," I replied. "Zatanna, this is Supergirl, also known as Kara. She's Superman's cousin."
"Hi," Kara said sweetly.
"It's nice to meet you, Kara," Zatanna replied. She sighed as she looked at Constantine. "How long were we gone? For us, it was only about three hours."
"It's been three months, Zee," I began. "And until Kara's ship crashed here two days ago, I thought I was the only survivor."
"Three months... My God," Zatanna mumbled. "Who else survived?"
"Gar's alive. So is Harley Quinn. She's helping us... Joker's dead."
"Do we trust her?"
"I'm still on the fence, but I think so. She's risking her life to help us right now... So is Gar."
"What do you mean?"
"He's working undercover with Harley. They're trying to find out who Lex has under his control... He's been turning heroes evil."
Constantine groaned and mumbled, "Bloody Hell..."
"John!" Zatanna cried in relief. "Are you alright?"
"I've been better, luv," he admitted. "Been worse, too." He shook his head. "Where the bloody hell are we?"
"This is the Bat Cave."
"The Bat Cave? As in Batman? How did we end up in the cranky old wanker's lair?"
"Hello, Mr. Constantine," Kara said politely. "I'm Supergirl, and this is Robin. Zatanna brought you both here."
"Drop the Mister, luv. It's just Constantine." He looked at the two of us and asked, "Where's Batsy? And does have any liquor lying around?"
"He's dead, John," Zatanna said softly.
"Well, then, he won't mind if I take his booze, will he?" He shrugged and added, "Who wants to drink with me?"
"None of us are old enough," I replied.
"It's the apocalypse, mate. Have a pint. I won't tell if you don't."
"No thanks."
Constantine sighed. "Bollocks! I didn't sign up to be a bloody nanny."
"I'm seventeen," I said. "I don't need a nanny, I just don't drink."
"And how old are you, luv?" He asked Kara.
"Sixteen," she replied.
"And Zee here is barely eighteen... Which makes her the responsible adult, because I don't qualify despite being older than the lot of you."
"Oh please," Damian said as he appeared from the shadows. "I'm probably the most mature one here."
"Bloody Hell! Where did he come from?" Constantine demanded.
"The League of Assassins," Damian replied.
"He's Batman's son," I clarified.
"Wait, what?" Zatanna asked in surprise.
"Alright, you heard the lad... The brooding Baby Bat is in charge," Constantine decided. "I'm off to make the strongest drink I can come up with." He walked off, presumably to drink himself into a coma.
"Hi," Zatanna said to Damian as she studied him. "I'm Zatanna. What's your name?"
"Damian," he replied. "How do you and the drunk fit into all of this?"
"I knew your dad... And I'm a friend of Robin's."
"If Grayson and the drunk are your idea of good company, you need to reevaluate your life choices."
She laughed slightly. "You're awfully outspoken, Damian," she said.
"I think you mean awfully obnoxious, Zee," I said.
Suddenly, Kara clutched her head and sank to her knees. She let out a cry of pain.
"Kara! What's wrong?" I asked as I knelt beside her.
"It hurts..." Kara mumbled.
"She's Kryptonian," Zatanna said. "This reaction can only be due to kryptonite."
"But she's been here with me since right after she crashed," I said. "How could she have come into contact with kryptonite?"
Damian frowned. "The package Merlyn sent," he said. "It must have been coated in liquid kryptonite. We had a stash at the League of Assassins... The liquid form gets absorbed through the skin and takes a little while to spread through the bloodstream."
"How do we fix her?" I demanded.
"Will the traditional remedies for kryptonite work?" Zatanna asked.
"It's traveling through her bloodstream," Damian replied. "Once it reaches her heart, she'll die."
"The hell she will!" I said firmly. "I'm not losing anyone else." I ran to one of the cabinets where Bruce stored the things he didn't want people to know we had. I was the only person he'd trusted with the code, possibly because he'd known I'd just hack my way in if he didn't give it to me.
There was a big box labeled CK. Bruce had set it up as a contingency in case something catastrophic happened to Superman. I figured Clark and Kara had similar DNA, so the supplies should work for her, too.
I found a vial of an experimental cure for kryptonite that Bruce had procured. It was fast-acting and had saved Clark's life once. I quickly calculated the dosage based on Kara's size and filled a cup with it.
"Drink this, Kara," I said urgently. "It should help."
She took the cup in trembling hands. I had to help her tilt it back, but she finally managed to drink it as Zatanna rubbed her back soothingly.
Kara started to look stronger. She took several deep breaths before saying, "Thank you, Dick..."
"Are you alright?" I asked.
"I think so... Whatever you gave me worked quickly."
"It's water infused with the remnants of a yellow star. The liquid form is diluted, but it's enough to neutralize the effects of a fatal dose of kryptonite."
Damian examined Kara closely. He even checked her pulse. "Her heart rate is strong and steady," he said. "She should be fine now." His tone was emotionless, but I caught the concern in his eyes. As tough as Damian acted, he had some capacity to care about others. He paused before adding, "Merlyn will pay for this, Kara. You have my word."
"How did he know a Kryptonian would come into contact with the package?" I asked.
"He must have seen you and Kara together before you made it back here," Damian replied.
"He couldn't have known that Kara would touch the box, though."
"Apophis," Kara replied. "Artificial Intelligence works by calculating the likely outcomes of situations. If he's watching us, he may have figured out that I would be the most likely one to reach the package first."
"So Merlyn is working with Luthor. I knew it," Damian mumbled.
"Do you think Lex turned him by force, or does he have free will?" I asked.
"It's hard to say. Merlyn isn't easy to control, but Luthor has apparently broken tougher minds."
Zatanna hesitated before asking, "Who did Lex turn evil?"
"Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, the Flash, Cyborg, Captain Marvel, Green Arrow, and Artemis," I replied.
"He has Artemis?" Zatanna asked in horror. Then, she paused. "Wait... Dick, where's Wally?"
I sighed. "He's gone. I don't know the details."
"What about the others?"
"As far as we know, they're all dead," I replied numbly. "Harley said there are a few others she hasn't seen... I'm hoping it's more people from our side, because he has villains under his control, too."
"He has a woman running the tech side," Damian added. "Harley hasn't been able to get close enough to see her yet."
Zatanna looked like something had concerned her about that statement, but she didn't say anything about it. Instead, she said, "I hate to ask, but I'm starving. Is there anything to eat around here?"
"Let's go up to the kitchen," I said. "I'll make you something. Kara, you should eat, too. It will help you regain your strength." I turned toward Damian. "Are you hungry, Shorty?" I asked.
He glared at my choice of words. "Watch it, Grayson," he said sharply.
"Sorry. Do you prefer Tiny Sociopath?"
He glared harder. Then, he said, "It is probably a good idea to eat now. We don't know when Harley or Beast Boy will tell us to move in, so we should all eat while we can."
"Great. Zee, does Constantine eat food, or does he exist purely on liquor?"
She chuckled and said, "I'm sure he's hungry, too. Honestly, I just met him when he saved me. We talked a decent amount, but it was mostly him asking about me, and us talking about magic. I don't know much of anything about him."
"Are you sure we can trust him?" Damian asked suspiciously.
"Like I said, he saved my life. I trust him."
"That's a good reason," Kara decided.
"Agreed," I replied. "So, it's settled. I'll feed everyone, and then I'll see if I can reach Harley for an update."
It wasn't much of a plan, but it was a start. Honestly, I was just thrilled that Zatanna was alive and not evil. Beyond that, nothing else mattered for the moment.