Part XXIII

While the heroes divided into teams, a small black cat slipped unnoticed through the shadows into the cavern that opened to the Throne Room. There, Oggar's cursed fiddle burned, the Ibistick gleamed gold, the glass jar and vial containing Mind's menace stood—

Broken.

The cat paused in his tracks, flattening his ears and baring his teeth in horror. "Empty! But, how, when—!"

"Traitor! Why are you here!"

A woman's voice sounded in the cat's mind like a distant shout. The startled animal jumped and hissed, then turned his stare to the looming mirror where a glassy face wavered like water.

"Francesca! You have it wrong," the cat responded. "The Wizard and I had a disagreement. I never intended—"

"Old S.H.A.Z.A.M.! is gone," Francesca said accusingly. "Your interference cost him precious time – time we no longer have. Our enemies stand at the gate and the Champion must face them untrained, unprepared and ignorant of the true stakes."

"I can help him – I can fix this!" the cat started, but Francesca's glare was cold as crystal.

"I am doing what I can to advise the Champion in the Wizard's absence. To warn him of the dangers ahead," she said. "But, my link to his world has become tenuous…so draining… Even here..."

The woman's face began to shimmer and fade. The cat reared up on his hind legs, pawing at the mirror's silvery frame as if trying to draw her back.

"Listen," she whispered, clearly struggling to maintain contact. "Mind and his Monster Society enacted some kind of energy field. I can barely…"

"Francesca!" the little cat cried. "Francesca, I can help but you have to concentrate. Hold on!"


Freddy flew ahead down the narrow passage, smiling when the rows of unlit torches lining the rough stone walls sputtered to glowing life as he passed by. The flames had an odd, deep reddish hue that, like the red light in a photographer's darkroom, didn't do much to chase away the shadows. But Freddy could see well enough to tell there was nothing obvious blocking their path. No boulders, no trap doors, no cave demons poised to attack…

"Did you see the way those torches lit up? Just by themselves – I didn't do anything," he said, flying back to circle around Superman before landing lightly beside him. "I know you're not the biggest magic fan, but that was pretty cool. Probably some kind of proximity spell, like a magical motion detector!"

Superman didn't respond right away, but Freddy knew better than to take it personally. After all, in the movies Superman wasn't exactly the silent type, but he wasn't particularly chatty either.

He glanced up at the slightly taller man, straightening his back and shoulders as he matched the Kryptonian's stride. No crutch, no stiff hip or dragging leg, just him and Superman walking side by side…!

Be cool, he told himself. Remember: you're not the kid he saw in the school cafeteria. You're a superhero same as him, so act like it!

"The corridor seems totally clear," he said. "I cased the place for any sign of booby traps, trip wires, laser beams, wall darts, suspicious levers – you name it. But that got me thinking: if the bad guys didn't mine the passageways, they must be focusing on the Thrones themselves. I mean, Sivana attacked us there before back when the Cap first got his powers, and they have to know that's where we'll be heading now, right? Especially if the Captain hopes to contact his dead Wizard's Source ghost like Zatanna said. So if we – that is, you and me – if we get to the Thrones first, it's gonna be up to us to scope out the area and—"

Superman suddenly stumbled and doubled over, his face distorted by a sharp wince.

"Superman!" Freddy gasped. "Hey, what's wrong? What happened?"

"I…I'm not sure…" Superman closed his eyes and took in a few slow breaths, accepting Freddy's help as he carefully straightened up. "The torches… I think…the light…"

"Oh my god!" Freddy exclaimed, staring at the red light saturating the rough stone passage. "Dude – that's it! That's the trap! I can't believe I didn't see it sooner! Krypton – your planet – it had a red sun, right? And your powers – you're like a solar battery, man! It's like, you need yellow sunlight or you get, like, totally drained. And here we are in this whole other dimension – a dimension that doesn't even have a sun as far as we know, with nothing but magic all around us… No wonder you—"

Superman cut him off, regarding him with narrowed eyes. "Freddy, how do you know all this?"

Freddy waved his concern away. "Dude, I know everything about you! Well, Superman-you, not, like, you know, secret identity stuff. I don't mean that in a creepy-stalker way – I'm a fan! Seriously, I've read, like, practically every Superman comic and graphic novel, I've seen your animated series and all the movies. I even used to have this official collectable bullet that—"

"All right, all right, I get the picture." Superman's frown deepened. "Lois was right. Maybe I should pay closer attention to the cartoons those studios have been putting out."

"They're not 'cartoons.' They're animated features," Freddy corrected automatically. "But seriously, it's OK. No one really believes all that stuff they say about you. Half the ki— uh, people I know think the writers make it up. But if it is true about Earth's sun feeding your powers and red Kryptonian-type sunlight draining them away, then it shouldn't be too hard to counter the effect of this red light. I bet, if we can get Zatanna to conjure you up some yellow light, you should feel good as new!"

"It's worth a try," Superman said grimly, struggling not to let himself lean too heavily against Freddy as they shuffled together down the corridor. Activating the comm device nestled in his ear, he said, "Zatanna, it's Superman. Zatanna – can you hear me?"

Freddy wrinkled his nose. "Tell me it's not working."

"It could be…that shield," Superman said, unable to stop his head from drooping, just a bit. The further they walked, the stronger the red torchlight seemed to grow. The effect wasn't nearly as intense or sickening as exposure to kryptonite, but it was pervasive, encompassing, and he was finding it increasingly difficult to fight back the need to just sit down and close his eyes for a while... "It blocked Batman's scanner. It's not…too much of a stretch…to figure it would block our comm devices too. But… If the villains knew to set this trap here, in this passage… They must have been watching when we split up. It's possible they heard our plans. We have to…to warn the others…"

He staggered and Freddy caught him, moving closer to wrap his strong arm around Superman's shoulders.

"These stupid torches are getting way worse," he said. "Come on, big guy. Hold tight to me, and I'll fly you out of this place. You'll feel better once we're away from this red light. I promise."

Lifting them both into the air, Freddy started forward—

ZZHHAAPP!

—only to slam headfirst into an energy wall he knew for certain had not been there before.

"Yow! The hell—!" He shook his head to clear it after the sharp electric shock – a jolt that could have stopped his heart as a kid. In his current form, he found it more startling than truly painful. Lowering Superman back to the floor, he said, "What is that, a force field?"

Superman picked up a loose stone and tossed it back the way they'd come, grimacing when it struck against a similar energy field.

"Looks like they're at both ends of the corridor," he said, raising his hands to rub his eyes and forehead. "This light…it's getting more intense…"

"Great," Freddy snapped and clenched his jaw, kicking some cave sand at the force field and watching it fizzle. He grabbed a torch and tried to blow it out, then stamp it out, then smother it with his white-gold cape. But, nothing he did had any effect on the deep red flames. "Because it's not real fire," he muttered, flinging the magic torch at the force field before sinking down to sit beside Superman. "Yeah, this is so not good…"


Batman frowned at the burning violin, the gleaming mask, the shattered glass jar on the narrow pedestal, then turned his curious gaze to Shazam, who winced a little and shook his head.

"Yeah," he said. "That jar was broken like that when I first came here. Don't ask me why the Wizard kept it." The big man looked around, his dark eyes lingering on the golden staff, the silver mirror, and he sighed in frustration.

"This isn't just a collection, like a museum or something. I think these are all artifacts the Wizard was supposed to guard," he said. "It's like, standing here, I can feel these things are important. I know they're powerful – even dangerous. But, like practically everything else around here, I can't name them. I can't tell you why they're here or what they're for."

"Did the Wizard leave any written documents?" Batman asked. "Anything that might offer you some clues?"

"I've been wondering that too," Shazam said. "Actually, my team and I were planning to spend our Spring Break exploring this place. I know—" He held up his hands. "Freddy kept telling me we should have done it sooner. But this year's been so crazy… We really haven't had a chance with school and everything, and with five kids running around, I wanted to be able to keep a close eye on them, you know? Not that they'd do anything on purpose!" he hurried to say. "Everyone's been really responsible, especially Mary. But in a place like this, one wrong step and who knows! You might end up accidentally unlocking some awful curse, or freeing an ancient monster."

He gestured to what looked like a sarcophagus, covered all over in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, then up to the vast skeleton of what could have been a dragon. Batman grunted his understanding and kept moving forward.

"What about these statues?" he asked, approaching the towering, grotesque figures of the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man lined up against the wall of the great hall.

"Those, I know," Shazam told him. "They're the Sins. Like, for real: The Seven Deadly Sins – super-old-school demons my Family and I keep trapped in stone with this thing over here. The Eye of Sin."

He moved to show Batman the dense, glowing ball of magical energy, but a faint whisper made him stop in place, prompting him to turn around…

"Batman, the mirror," he said, zipping back to the chamber they'd just left to stare at its wavering surface. "It's her, it's Francesca – the same face I saw in Zatanna's dressing room!"

"I'm not seeing anything," Batman said grimly, stepping closer to inspect the magic mirror from all sides.

"Her image is really faint. Way worse than before. I can hardly… Wait, I think she's trying to say something…" Shazam leaned in, straining his ears and his mind to catch her words…

"Champion, do not believe your eyes," the mirror maiden warned. "The Throne Room is not as it appears."

"What do you mean?" Shazam asked. "Do you know about Sivana and the others? Can you tell me what they've been up to?"

"Champion: Hear me," Francesca whispered urgently, her glassy features wavering and fading as she fought to get her message through. "Whatever occurs, whatever you see, you must not call upon your powers in this hall. Do not allow your brethren to speak your name. Not here, not yet. The Wizard's seal must no—"

The mirror darkened without warning, leaving Shazam staring at his own reflection.

"No – dammit! She's gone. Cut off." He sighed through his teeth. "It's that shield thing, it's gotta be. We need to find out where it's coming from. Find a way to shut it down."

"What did she tell you?" Batman asked.

"There's something off about the Throne Room. About this whole hall," Shazam said, trying to track every detail as he strode toward the center of the main hall, then slowly turned a full circle. "She said it's not as it appears. But I don't see anything weird or out of place. Unless…"

He stood very still and closed his eyes, the yellow lightning bolt on his chest glowing a bright, intense white as he concentrated on his surroundings…the feel of the magical energy all around him...

A high-pitched scream snapped his focus, and both he and Batman turned toward the sound.

"That sounded like—"

"Mary!" Shazam exclaimed, already dashing toward the side passage. But, Mary met him first, flying into the main hall like a red, white and gold streak, carrying Zatanna in her arms.

"Mary, Zatanna! Oh my god, are you guys OK?" he asked, rushing to help as they touched down on the hall's rough stone floor. Both women seemed flushed and breathless, their faces and costumes streaked with dirt.

"Yeah, we're all right," Mary said. "But the cat… Billy, that cat saved our lives. We have to go back and—!"

"What happened?" Batman demanded, his voice so commanding all three of them froze then blinked.

"It was a psychic assault," Zatanna told them, shaking the dust from her hat and dark hair.

"It started shortly after we entered the passage," Mary said. "Thousands of horrible insects and crawly things – they were everywhere! Climbing up our legs, getting tangled in our hair!" She shuddered hard at the memory and rubbed her arms. "It all felt so real, but Zatanna realized the bugs we thought we were seeing were actually an illusion."

"I did what I could to block it," Zatanna said. "The shield surrounding these chambers made it difficult. But, that was just the beginning. From there, the visions only got worse. The images became more…tailored. The aim was to disorient us, frighten us, but there's more to it than that." She frowned, looking Shazam and Batman straight in the eye. "I'm certain I sensed a mind at work."

"I know, I felt that too," Mary said. "It was like those nightmares back home, or that weird experience at the casino, only this time we were awake and aware of everything. If that cat hadn't jumped out at us like that, I'm sure— Oh, Captain!" she exclaimed. "The cat! If it got caught inside the force field—!"

"The cat is fine, I assure you," a man spoke from the shadows, his deep, dignified voice softened by a long-faded accent.

"Who are you?" Batman demanded, his gloved hand snapping to his utility belt as Zatanna took up a defensive posture beside him.

"I'm called Mr. Tawny, Batman. Tawky Tawny to my friends," the man said, offering Shazam a warm, though somewhat apologetic smile as he stepped out into the yellowish torchlight of the main hall. "Hello again, Captain. It's been a long time."

Shazam stared at the lean, rangy figure and swallowed hard. He knew that battered brown coat, the ratty old baseball cap and purple scarf…the white mustache and goatee beard he always used to joke made the old man look like one of the tigers they'd seen together at the zoo…

"Holy moley…!" He choked and looked away, pressing his clenched fingers to his mouth. "No. No, it's gotta be a trick. One of those illusions you were just talking about."

"He's not an illusion," Zatanna said, her eyes narrowed. "But there is more to him than we can see."

Mary moved closer to her brother. "Billy, who is that man?" she asked. "At least, who do you think he is?"

"I'm an ifrit, my girl," the man introduced himself as he walked closer to the wary group. "A wandering spirit that changes from human to animal. You and Zatanna saw me as a small black cat. The Captain, here, knows me as—"

"Old Talky," Shazam croaked, his eyes filling with tears. "'Cause you were always talking like that…telling me about ifrits and djinn, monsters and demons… I thought they were just stories…!" He wiped his hands over his face and glared. "How can you be here?" he demanded. "How do you even know who I am! The last time I saw you—"

"You were ten years old," the old man said gently. "And look at you now." He smiled up at the much larger man, his yellow-green eyes brimming with grandfatherly pride. "Perhaps the old Wizard was right after all. The Champion's mantle looks good on you. And, I must say, you wear the name well."

"Talky…" Shazam sniffled and pulled the old man into a powerful hug. "Talky, you're real. Holy moley, I just can't believe—!"

"Oh, my dear boy. I wish I had time to explain," he said, warmly returning the hug before pulling away to address the rest of the group. "But, as you and your friends well know, the Rock of Eternity is currently under siege."

"The woman in the mirror spoke of a Monster Society," Zatanna said. "Of malevolent forces aiming to use the power of the Magic Lands to threaten Magic's Source."

"All true, I'm afraid," the old man said grimly, and glanced up at the dais, where the Seven Thrones stood in a semi-circle beneath the lightning bolt insignia carved into the wall. "You were right to expect an ambush. Taking a three-pronged approach was a wise move. But you don't know what you're up against."

"And you do?" Batman frowned at the smaller man.

Tawny smirked, but his eyes were deeply troubled. "Not here," he said, shooting a dark glance toward the far alcove. "Follow me and watch your step. There's something I think you should see."

"Wait," Mary said, holding back as the group started to move. "What about Freddy and Superman?"

"You're right," Zatanna said. "They should have made it through to the far side of the dais by now."

"Unless they ran into trouble." Batman tapped the comm unit in his ear, then remembered the shield. "Jammed," he snarled.

"I'll go," Shazam said, already rising off the ground. "Just tell me where to meet you."

Tawny gestured for him to fly close enough so he could whisper in his ear, then touched his hand to the Captain's forehead.

"Remember what Francesca told you, my boy," he said. "No matter what you see, no matter what you encounter, you must not call down the lightning or allow your brother to speak your name out loud."

"I'll remember," Shazam assured him. "And I'll be back. With Freddy and Superman."

"A touching sentiment," a tinny voice announced, sounding from every craggy corner like an overamplified PA system. "But highly unlikely."

"That doesn't sound like Sivana or Ibac," Shazam said, sinking back down to join the others in a defensive circle as they stared warily around the hall.

"Billy, I know that voice," Mary said, her eyes wide with horror. "I've heard it before, in my nightmares…!"

"Quite right," the cruel voice confirmed. "I've been in your mind, my child. I know the fears that make you quake and cry at night. And not just you."

A nauseating shimmer washed over the cavernous room like a wave, rolling back the illusion of normality to reveal a terrible scene.

"No!" Shazam gasped at the sight of Pedro, Darla and Eugene bound, gagged and dangling unconscious over their Thrones from a strange metal scaffold. Ignoring Batman's call to wait, he flew toward his helpless siblings, only to slam into a shimmering energy field the moment he reached the dais. The tinny voice burst into laughter as he shook off the field's disorienting stun effect.

"What the—!"

"Captain, the Sins!" Mary exclaimed, pointing to the chips of ruined stone, like shed skin, piled where the seven statues used to stand. "Sivana must have taken the Eye!"

"Oh, I've taken more than that," Sivana said, stepping out from behind the dais with a strange looking gun in his hands. He was flanked by Ibac, a snarling Crocodile Man, and a muscular brute with a spiked helmet and club.

"Surrender, Champion," the tinny voice crowed. "Your Family and friends are in my power now. There is no resisting the awesome might of Mr. Mind! Bwa ha hee hee haw haw!"

To Be Continued…


References Include - Shazam! The Monster Society of Evil by Jeff Smith (paraphrased/directly quoted); Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam: Family Affair by Mike Kunkel, Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani; Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam; Lego DC: Shazam!: Magic and Monsters; Shazam! (1981); Batman: The Brave and the Bold; Justice League/Justice League Unlimited; Young Justice; Justice League: War; Justice League Dark: Apokolips War; Justice League Action; Superman: The Animated Series; Superman vs. The Elite; Batman: The Animated Series; Justice, by Alex Ross and Jim Krueger; The Multiversity, by Grant Morrison; Shazam! (movie); Shazam! Volume 1, by Geoff Johns; Shazam! #1-11 by Geoff Johns.

Some Notes On Mr. Tawky Tawny: Mr. Tawny has a long, choppy, and somewhat intricate history. He started off as an intelligent tiger from India who moved to the US and, with the help of Captain Marvel, became a dignified tweed suit-wearing museum tour guide (this version is referenced in the 1981 Shazam! animated series). Later on, he was portrayed as Mary's plush toy tiger that was brought to life by a demon and became a six-foot tall anthropomorphic talking tiger/pooka (the plush toy tiger/general tiger motif is repeatedly referenced in the Shazam! live action movie and also in Batman: The Brave and the Bold). Later still, Tawny was shown as a regular tiger who was either genetically-enhanced (as seen in the Young Justice animated series) or magically transformed into a giant smilodon (with or without armor depending on whether he's the Billy Batson/Shazam! or Captain Thunder version). In the current comics, Mr. Tawky Tawny is an escapee from the Wildlands living with the Shazamily on Earth: an intelligent, anthropomorphic talking tiger with a preference for wearing human-type clothing.

Those versions are fine and probably more 'canon', but my personal favorite version of Mr. Tawky Tawny shows up in Shazam! The Monster Society of Evil by Jeff Smith; Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam: Family Affair by Mike Kunkel, Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani; and (sort of) in Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam. Here, Mr. Tawny is an ifrit with the ability to transform into a tiger, a human, or a little black cat. This is particularly interesting because in stories of King Solomon (who provides the S in Shazam's name), an ifrit offered to bring him the Queen of Sheba's throne, and "The Fisherman and the Jinni" from the Arabian Nights, or One Thousand and One Nights, features an ifrit kept locked in a jar by the Seal of Solomon. A powerful magical entity in his own right, this version of Mr. Tawny has a close connection with the Wizard S.H.A.Z.A.M.!, acting as a self-described 'superhero talent scout' to aid his search for a worthy successor. Disguised as a homeless man, Tawny met Billy Batson at one of the roughest periods of the young boy's life. Impressed by his strong spirit and caring heart, Tawny gave Billy the opportunity to meet the Wizard, who chose the boy to become his Champion, Captain Marvel. In the comics, this version of Tawky Tawny looks like a skinny old man of Indian or Middle Eastern descent with white hair and a tiger-like white mustache and goatee, and he's usually shown wearing a brown jacket, purple scarf, patched green trousers, and a baseball cap. Because this version is my favorite version, he's the one I'll mostly be basing Mr. Tawny on in this story. :D

Regarding The Immortal Oggar: Did you know S.H.A.Z.A.M.!'s name used to be SHAZAMO? (giggle) It's a weird old story arc. Long, long ago (about 3,000 years, or somewhere around 1946 (mainly Captain Marvel Adventures #64)), the Wizard Shazam took on a pupil called Oggar. In typical fashion, Oggar started out super promising, to the point that his O was added to the pantheon of gods, kings and heroes that made up Shazam's name. But ultimately Oggar turned evil, had to be defeated, and the O was dropped from Shazam(o). While he was being evil, Oggar started the 'Cult of the Curse' and recruited four delusional madmen convinced they were (respectively) Nero, Napoleon, Samson, and Julius Caesar. I bring this up because it's possibly/probably this fake Nero's fiddle that's shown burning in the Rock of Eternity, so I thought I should reference it. I'll also probably be referencing Isis, Ibis the Invincible, the Ibistick and a few other items at some point so I'll make notes for them when I get there. :)

Thanks so much for reading and for your reviews! :D The next chapters for Croaked and Often Wrong are still in the works and should be ready to post soon. Stay tuned for more story, and please let me know what you think! Your comments are always welcome, helpful, and very much appreciated. Thank you! :D