Child landed on a floating platform amid a purple void with purple rocks floating in the atmosphere. "Mr. Nelson. Mr. Nabu," Child greeted as she floated down and landed between the two men tied to chairs. One man was dressed in an impeccable 3-piece-suit; the other was dressed in ancient Egyptian garb. Both had magical bonds carved with runes, gagging and tying them to chairs. "Forgive the interruption to your little chat, but it seems one among you is meddling in my game of hide-and-seek. It's quite vexing, I must say. Please, do me a favor and kindly stop." The two men exchanged glances. "Hmm?" Child cocked her head. "It's not either of you causing the disruption. Tell me—do either of you know this caped teen?" She held up a magic screen showing the girl teleporting her team members away. Again, the two exchanged glances. "It seems you don't know this person. I appreciate your help, but I must get back to my game. Don't worry; I'll be back to deal with you shortly."
Zatanna was exhausted. I can't keep this up. She no longer had to worry about the giant, metal and stone oaf, she recognized as Flaw. He had disappeared into midair. I barely escaped him, she thought as she ducked. She was back to dodging killer books and flying shelves. Thankfully, some of her magical powers had returned to her. "Dleihs!" She conjured a shield around her. This isn't working. She turned her head every which way, looking for something. Anything. She then saw a red, glowing rune in the distance, carved into a wall. "That's a start." Dissolving her shield, she sprinted to the wall. "Dliehs." She conjured a shield with one hand and placed her hand beside the rune. "Great," she huffed. "Way too powerful. If I touch it, I'll burn from the inside out." Suddenly, black lines formed inside the rune, cracking and reshaping it. A black void formed in the middle. "What is that?"
"Can you please step through? I can't hold this for much longer," Zatanna heard Raven speak inside of her head.
"Raven?" Zatanna raised both brows in surprise. "How are you doing that?"
"Questions later. Enter the portal, please."
"Right. Here goes nothing." Zatanna stepped into the portal and appeared in a kitchen surrounded by her teammates. Red Robin, Artemis, Robin, and an exhausted Raven, who slouched against some cabinets, were also present in the kitchen. "You're all okay?" Zatanna asked immediately.
"I just fought clowns while balancing on a tightrope," Robin answered. "I am very much not okay."
"I mean, physically," Zatanna clarified.
"A bit shaken emotionally," Artemis answered, "but fine physically. Raven looks to be in terrible shape."
Zatanna turned to the half-breed, surprised to see her hood down for a change. Beads of sweat clung to Raven's forehead as she gasped for air. "You reshaped the runes," Zatanna frowned. "How?"
Raven responded, "The perks of being the offspring of an interdimensional demon & war lord who may or may not be pure evil personified with vast amounts of magical knowledge, and also being the offspring of two celestial beings, make him almost a god." The other four stared at her in bewilderment.
"You're the offspring of a what who is what from what?" Robin asked.
"Not the time," Red Robin interrupted. He looked at his holo-map. "Whatever was disrupting my tech is no longer an issue. My tech doesn't spot magic anomalies. I'll have to rely on you and Zatanna for that. There's a lot of movement on the top level, though. We should be able to access it through the door straight ahead."
The team silently walked over to the door. "Are we sure there's not a magical zombie cyclops on the other side?" Artemis asked.
"I sense nothing on the other side," Raven answered. The group turned to Zatanna.
"What?" Zatanna asked with a shrug.
"Raven just made a statement about magic," Robin replied. "Care to refute it?"
"Robin," Red Robin hissed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"If Raven senses nothing on the other side of the door, chances are, nothing is on the other side of the door," Zatanna said. "Can we go?"
"Okay." Red Robin sighed before opening the door. The Team walked through it.
"Good news, nothing is attacking us; bad news, there's 100s of stairs," Robin pointed upwards. The Team had already been looking up when Robin spoke.
"We know, Robin," Artemis sighed, "we see the stairs, too." She grabbed an altimeter arrow from her quiver, aimed the bow upwards, and released. Artemis looked at the small receiver in her hand and watched as her arrow flew higher and higher and higher. "It's not stopping," she groaned, returning the receiver to a hidden pocket. "I hate this stupid magical mansion," she groaned.
"No way it goes on forever," Robin shook his head.
"Physically, it doesn't," Red Robin said, looking at his scanner.
"A series of portals," Raven and Zatanna said simultaneously. The two looked at each other in surprise.
"Explain."
"The arrow is probably traveling through several portals – a defensive measure before any uninvited guest reaches the top," Zatanna quickly explained.
"In reality, the tower is probably no more than 1,000 feet tall," Raven said.
"Can you teleport us up there?" Robin asked.
"I'd rather not make another attempt at teleportation in the magical tower," Raven said. "Who knows where you guys will end up?"
"Well, well, an astute decision. I'm impressed," a child-like voice wrang throughout the tower.
"Oh no," Zatanna groaned. "I meant to warn you about her. I know who has control of the tower."
"Who?" Red Robin asked.
"As much as I'd enjoy watching you crawl to the top, I've grown bored of this slow game. I suppose I'll lend a hand in your little quest."
Before anyone could react, the Team exclaimed as they felt themselves get sucked through a void before feeling solid ground beneath their feet. Raven looked around. They were on a floating platform in a purplish space. They were in a pocket dimension. She turned to her teammates to say something and frowned. Red Robin, Artemis, and Robin were doubled over. "Definitely need to practice teleporting," Red Robin said as Artemis dry-heaved.
"Am I seeing things or is there a girl on the other side?" Robin asked, still trying to find his footing. Raven followed his gaze. Sure enough, there was a blonde girl no older than 10, wearing a school uniform. While her appearance suggested a sweet demeanor, something in her eye told Raven she was anything but sweet.
"You," Zatanna growled.
"Greetings, Zatanna," the little girl said in a sickeningly sweet voice. "It is so good to see you again."
"You know her?" Red Robin asked.
"Unfortunately," Zatanna replied.
"Let me introduce myself. I am Child. How delightful to meet you," she curtsied.
"You go by Child?" Robin asked with a snort.
"I like the name. It suits me," Child giggled before turning to the Red Robin. "Now, my sources tell me you're Red Robin. Your outfit is a dead giveaway. And you must be Artemis," she pointed to the blonde archer, "daughter of Sportsmaster. Here we have the newest member of the batfamily - Robin. And, of course, Zatanna." She turned her mischievous but dead brown eyes to Raven. "I've never seen or heard of you before. Then again, that hood is in the way. Let's fix that, shall we?" Child snapped her fingers, and Raven's hood flew off her head. "Hmm?" Child cocked her head to the said while wracking her brain. "I've lived many years and seen thousands of faces. However, I do not recognize yours. May I inquire as to your name?"
"Inquire all you want," Raven replied, miffed at her hood being forcibly removed, "I have no intention of telling you."
The smile froze on Child's froze. "How rude of you."
"Enough of this," Zatanna stepped forward. "Where's Kent Nelson?"
"Here," she answered as she snapped her fingers. A gold helmet appeared in her hand. "With the help of the Lords of Chaos, I've trapped Mr. Kent Nelson in the helmet. His spirit, along with Nabu's, now resides in the Helmet of Fate. As long as I control the helmet, the scales are tipped in Chaos' favor.
"Then why not put the helmet on?" Artemis asked. "Afraid Nabu won't accept you."
"I can handle Nabu," Child sneered.
"No, you can't," Zatanna said thoughtfully. "Putting on that helmet would be the beginning of a never-ending battle of wills between you and Nabu. Add Kent Nelson to the mix, you'd get overwhelmed. You'd have to rely on the power of the Chaos Lords to overpower the two. But siphoning all that magical energy from the Chaos Lords would weaken them."
"That makes sense," Robin said. "But why stay in the Tower?"
Child narrowed her eyes.
"You can't take the helmet out of the tower," Red Robin said in realization. "It's tethered to the Tower, somehow."
"That's right," Zatanna's eyes raised in realization. "Let me guess. With the backing of all the Chaos Lords, you ambushed Dr. Fate in his tower. A truly stupid decision." Child glared at Zatanna, but Zatanna ignored her and continued speaking. "You couldn't separate Kent Nelson from the helmet, as that is nearly impossible. You must have been battling for hours, maybe days. In an act of desperation, you created a spell that forced Nabu and Kent to share the same space. What you didn't know is that the helmet can't leave the tower unless Nabu's chosen agent wears it. You reported your failure to the Chaos Lords."
"I did not fail," Child clenched her fists.
"Hush, an adult is talking," Zatanna shushed her. "The Chaos Lords probably told you to stay put as they search ferociously for a spell that tethers the helmet from the tower. However, you knew that eventually someone would come looking for Dr. Fate. You needed to get control of the tower. Hence, the intricate and complex runes on the walls."
"Bravo, Miss Zatarra. You really are more intelligent than you look," Child clapped her hands condescendingly. "The runes I carved are intricate and complex. I'm surprised you were able to reconstruct them. Creating them used nearly all my magical energy. Had you shown up a day earlier, you would have easily overpowered me. Alas, I am now well-rested."
"Whatever," Zatanna said, "we're here to free Kent Nelson."
"You remember my BFF," Child smiled. She snapped her fingers and a giant creature made of rock and metal appeared in front of them.
"What is that?" Robin asked, taking a cautious step back.
"Her bodyguard and anchor to Earth's plane," Zatanna replied.
"Yeah, I understood half of that sentence," Robin replied as he prepared his bo staff.
"I originally sent him to collect you," Child said to Zatanna before turning to Raven, "but then you piqued my interest. I sent him to collect you. However, I decided to bring you here instead. Are you sure you won't tell me your name? I'll need a name to put on your tombstone." Raven clenched her jaw as her hands crackled with black energy. "Have it your way," Child shrugged. "Flaw, fetch."