Graymar1: I was wondering what can the justice league do and can't do can they disbanded a government funded group or attack a government facilities like if the league was to find out about freelancers and foxhound they can't just go and attack cause they don't like how they do there work did the UN give them that power to do that and get ashy from it like in justice league unlimited when superman attack Cadmus facility yes they where cloneing pepole but it was a government funded project and superman got away with it and there is aquman and Wonder Woman both represent there nations so they would have diplomatic freedom to do what they want with out getting in trouble with the local gorvment or does the league UN charters have them pay for the damages they cause. anywhy great chapter can't wait for the next
NeoNazo356: Now this will be a fun one to answer.
And also a bit wordy, so if some of you out there decide to skip over this, that's fair too.
Ahem.
First off, "no", the Justice League can't do whatever they want whenever they want wherever they want, they're all subject to UN Charter, which means very specifically, they can only operate in countries that agreed to and signed the Charter; something seen in the first episode of Justice League Unlimited, "Initiation". Vlatava not being subject to the charter, as long as Count Vertigo took control of the country, was what made it such prime real estate for The Light; a country where the League couldn't freely enter was a very tempting beachhead. If the Justice League goes into a country that doesn't sign the Charter, or at least was caught doing so, they'd be branded as criminals.
As for the Justice League not liking how other organizations do things, when Batman and Amanda Waller butted heads over this in Earth-12 (DCAU), Waller threatened to reveal Batman's identity, and by extension, the rest of the League's. In addition, in Earth-16H, even if the Justice League doesn't like the way that Project Freelancer and FOXHOUND do things, both are sanctioned by the US Government, thus the Justice League has no say in the matter. If they did attack either group, they'd all be tried for treason, and those with ties to the US would probably be put on the Terrorist Watchlist, with the rest of the League becoming terrorist internationally. In short, there's no way they can overthrow either organization legally, and they're smart enough to let it lie. More-specifically, Project Freelancer are a legalized PMSC/Private Military Security Provider that operates within the boundaries of the UN, and FOXHOUND is part of the US Special Forces; both are perfectly legal as long as they operate within the rules they've sworn to follow.
In Justice League Unlimited, when Superman went to rescue Question, the where he was being rescued from is very important: At that time Question was being rescued from a "black site", an off-the-books facility where government spooks like Waller can do whatever they want, but as a consequence the law doesn't protect them. Basically, the reason Superman "got away with" attacking that Project Cadmus base was because in order to press charges, Waller would have to reveal that her organization had not only arrested and detained someone without due process, but also tortured them for information; something the Geneva Convention frowns heavily upon.
Onto Aquaman and Wonder Woman. They both have "diplomatic immunity", and they could do whatever they wanted, but if Atlantis and Themyscira respectively did not punish them for any wrongdoings they did, then the country that said wrongdoings happened in would have no obligation to punish their own diplomats if they did anything in Atlantis or Themyscira.
"In the United States, the Diplomatic Relations Act of 1978 (22 U.S.C. et seq.) follows the principles introduced by the Vienna Conventions. The United States tends to be generous when granting diplomatic immunity to visiting diplomats, because a large number of U.S. diplomats work in host countries less protective of individual rights. If the United States were to punish a visiting diplomat without sufficient grounds, U.S. representatives in other countries could receive harsher treatment. If a person with immunity is alleged to have committed a crime or faces a civil lawsuit, the State Department asks the home country to waive immunity of the alleged offender so that the complaint can be moved to the courts. If immunity is not waived, prosecution cannot be undertaken. However, the State Department still has the right to expel the diplomat. In many such cases, the diplomat's visas are canceled, and he and his family may be barred from returning to the United States. Crimes committed by members of a diplomat's family can also result in dismissal."
Also, yes, though the Justice League does operate internationally under UN Charter, the League is still obligated to "pony up" funds for infrastructure destroyed in their fights; something they have budget meetings about. The League being held accountable for damages motivates the League to act tactfully with their surroundings, because the UN is being very generous when giving the League as much freedom as they do, and that freedom can be redacted at any time. If that freedom is redacted, they would have to fight against both sides of the law, and admittedly, Batman's job was much harder during Gillian B. Loeb's time when the "Anti-Batman Task Force" hounded the Dark Knight's every move. This is also partly why merchandising is so important; because the Justice League has to stay within their Operating Budget, and Batman can't pay for everything, since Bruce has to actually be discrete with where he sends his money. Leaving a paper trail to follow once endangered the life of Earl Cooper, the mechanic who created the Batmobile in Earth-12.
OmegaDelta: Lets see if Virgil can get to Zatanna before 10 can use herbas a hostage. Keep up the good work.
NeoNazo356: You'll see right-now, except there's a twist.
Blaze1992: Wait did he tell them just what happened at the school or did he tell them the whole truth aka being from the dying NYZ?
Either way why didn't you show their reaction to it?
NeoNazo356: Lilith's exact words were, and I quote, "Virgil, you look like you've been holding something imposssibly-heavy in for a while, and that look in your eyes... I don't like it, which means whatever you're hiding can not be healthy. You want us to help you save this girl, then you have to agree to spill the beans on what the hell would make a kid have that kind of look on his face."
Their help on this matter (last-chapter) is "conditional" on the fact that he tells them why he has "that kind of look". However, since they have an important mission coming up, it's implied that that is being shelved for later, so as to have fewer "distractions", by the fact that there is no elaboration on that talk. In short, he agreed to tell them something, at a later time.
Virgil never said what he would tell them, is 100% factual, though, since he did sign an NDA, and him being out of NYZ and being ousted as a renegade would mark him a dangerous fugitive.
*WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS*
Zatanna Zatarra was not having a good day.
At the start of her day her magic had been completely nullified by a misogynistic amulet and she was subsequently chased around Las Vegas by "performing arts students". Things had gotten better when that cute boy had come to her rescue, admittedly a little brutally for her tastes, but things turned worse again when they were attacked within the Bellagio, the one place she was supposed to be safe, before being separated again.
She didn't know what time it was, but her magic was nullified once more, and she was once again being held hostage.
Not only that, but mutterings from the goons around her alluded to the fact that her new friend, Virgil, had been subsequently shot and buried in the desert somewhere.
She wanted to cry. She did cry in fact. But because of Faust's amulet around her neck, no sounds could be made. The girl had cried until she couldn't cry any more, her eyes red and puffy with tears.
If Virgil hadn't gotten involved, if she hadn't let him get involved, he might still be alive right now, and the thought that his death was her fault filled her with dread.
'Dammt!' she swore mentally, using a word she'd overheard a delinquent at her Catholic school use; because yes, even Catholic schools had those. 'Dammit!' she swore again as she struggled against the ropes binding her wrists, only for the end of a gun to press against her temple; a Tornado-6, but it wouldn't be until much later she learned that little tidbit.
Not that it would've helped her now anyway.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Ten hummed idly, cocking the hammer back and cowing Zatanna back into submission. "Good. You know how to take orders. Behave and you might live to see another day."
"You mean like how you let my friend live!?"
Zatanna wanted to say that, but all Ten saw was the brunette narrowing her eyes up at her and flapping her gums angrily.
*Knock*Knock*Knock*
"Hey, boss!" a voice called out from behind the door.
"Enter," Ten stated, the door opening a moment later revealing one of the goons from before, dragging in something behind him.
"I caught this guy skulking around the maintenance tunnels. What should I do with him?" the goon asked in a deeper voice that didn't match his relatively short stature, jostling his cargo by the scruff of his neck.
'Virgil!?' Zatanna gawped, seeing a familiar head of brown hair and casual clothes.
The fact that Virgil had not only escaped capture by the Royal Flush Gang, but had come back to rescue her, caused the pubescent girl's heart to soar.
However, the fact she was seeing him again as a captive caused her stomach to sink, the contradicting sensations causing her head to swim.
"Hmmm…" Ten hummed, staring at the unconscious brunette before turning her attention up to the white-clad goon. "What should we do with him? Why…" she hummed as she brought her pistol to bear, Zatanna's heart sinking as she struggled desperately against the restraints. "We do this."
*BANG*BANG*BANG*
Zatanna's lips grew wide into a horrified, silent shriek as three shots were discharged, expecting her friend to erupt in geysers of blood as his prone, vulnerable form was shot.
However, it took the girl a couple seconds to realize it wasn't Virgil that had been shot, but the goon that'd brought him in, the man taking three rounds to the chest throwing him against the wall.
At the same time, his cargo struck the floor, head bouncing twice, the magical girl's eyes going wide as she realized it was not Virgil dragged in by the scruff of his neck, but someone wearing Virgil's clothes!
'Which means...!?' the girl gaped as she looked up at the man that just got shot.
"Agh! Bitch!" the white-clad "goon" swore, now in a more-familiar voice.
"You know, you almost had me there," Ten stated as she strode toward the prone figure Zatanna now knew to be Virgil in disguise. "Unfortunately for you, I'm not that stupid."
"Heh… Could've fooled me," Virgil quipped as he pulled his mask free, a trickle of blood leaving his lips. "You really think you can get away with screwing with the Justice League… by abducting one of their members and their kid?" he asked between ragged breaths.
He wasn't really fond of "hiding behind" the League, but if it'd buy him a few seconds or stop him from dying altogether, he'd stoop and grovel as much as it took.
After all, history was filled with people who'd been killed because of a little too much pride.
"Well, you see, that's just the thing. With the ruckus that bag of rotting bag of meat kicked up earlier, the League would never think of another criminal group trying anything," Ten stated calmly. "Everyone praises them, worships the ground they walk on, but after a while, they can get really predictable."
"You mean because after a big sting outside their established territories, they rarely stick around?" he asked trying to sit up, only for the concrete next to his head to explode from a warning shot, shrapnel splitting his left ear open causing the red-eyed brunette to swear once more as blood trickled down his neck.
"Something like that," Ten replied coolly, glancing an eye over her shoulder to Zatanna before redirecting her attention toward her unwanted guest. "So… Any final words?" Ten asked leveling her gun at Virgil's forehead, all the while maintaining a professional distance so she could put one between his eyes in case he got his second wind and tried anything.
"Yeah. Just one," Virgil smirked. "NOW!" he shouted as his eyes darted to the corner opposite of Zatanna.
Both hers and Zatanna's eyes whirling around to an empty corner of the room, before both sets could whirl back to Virgil, the lights in the room suddenly, and inexplicably, went out, blanketing the room in darkness.
*WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS*
'No idea why that happened, but I can work with this!'
Adrenaline flooding his body through sheer force of will, Virgil bolted to the left as a muzzle flash went off in front of him, the concrete where his head had once been exploding before darkness smothered the room once more. Another two *BANG*s and muzzle flashes following as he strafed around her, with a practiced hand the woman threw her revolver back, spent casings cascading to the floor, the din of metal bouncing on concrete filling the darkened room as she slotted in a fresh batch of ammo with a speed loader before bringing her firearm to bear once again.
Firing another three shots, muzzle flashes briefly filling the room with light, Virgil bit back a yelp as one round clipped him in the shoulder. Forcing the pain from the flesh wound down into the back of his mind as he dove at her, his teeth went for her jugular in a stupidly-desperate move like that of a cornered animal, his hands forcing her wrists away from her center as he threw his weight on her. The woman falling to the floor from the added weight, Virgil's forehead struck her chin a moment after the back of her skull struck concrete, both their ears ringing while Ten was left seeing stars, another shot from her revolver flying wide into the darknes.
Ten tried bringing her revolver back to bear, the chunk taken out of Virgil's arm weakening him. With the same rabid, adrenaline-fueled ferocity that'd carried him this far into the gun fight, Virgil opened his mouth wide and chomped at Ten's throat once more, the woman letting out a pain-filled shriek into the darkness as she felt blood spattering from broken skin, another shot flying wide before Virgil pulled away from her neck and headbutt her, the lights flickering back on from the rolling blackout that had turned the tide.
The woman, able to see her own blood spurting out more freely, abandoned her weapon and forced her palms to her neck through sheer foce of will, stemming the bleeding as best she could.
Virgil wasn't a vampire or a tarkata or anything like that, but even he could bite someone hard enough to at least nick the jugular.
"Death by revolver" was a damned good motivator if ever there was one.
Virgil, seeing that the woman wasn't a threat as long as she valued her own life, stopped fighting her, the woman's hands clamping down around her nicked jugular even harder, rivulets of crimson trickling between her gloved hands. Ragged breaths passing her lips, eyes of blue went wide as the barrel of her own revolver was suddenly pressed into her chest between her bosom, the hammer of her Tornado-6 cocked back as Virgil looked down at her, the fire in his eyes dimming, but refusing to go out.
"Hope you're wearing Kevlar, bitch."
*BANG*
The last thing Ten saw before blacking out from the shot, apart from her blood staining his lips and chin, was a blotchy black smear like warpaint across his eyes that hadn't been there before.
"Huh, guess you were wearing Kevlar," Virgil hummed idly as he rose to his feet, one hand clutching his chest where his own Kevlar had taken the hit, while the other tossed the spent revolver to the other side of the room. "Hey, Zatanna, you okay?"
Looking over his shoulder, a knot of dread formed in Virgil's gut as he saw the brunette curled up into herself, shaking like a leaf with eyes clamped shut, body turned away from the gunshots that'd gone off.
'Poor thing… With everything that's happened today, and all these gunshots going off in her face like this, she must be scared out of her mind,' Virgil thought with a saddened expression as his gaze turned to the bullet-riddled room.
A room she'd probably be spending many a nightmare in if this really got to her.
A ragged coughing drawing his attention, Virgil turned his gaze back to Ten, who'd only had the wind knocked out of her when her Kevlar absorbed that one round to her chest at point-blank range. Her hands going back up to her throat, blood still spurting out of the nicked artery, fearful eyes flicked between the blood-soaked teen and her spent revolver, wondering if this was where she'd meet her end.
The woman's eyes went wide and her blood turned cold in her veins as the brunette she'd been shooting at a moment before stripped out of the onesie he'd been stolen, leaving him in nothing but his socks, boxers, and Kevlar vest.
However, instead of doing what she thought he was going to do, he started ripping apart the white onesie into strips, kneeling down next to her.
"I don't like you, but I'm not about to let you bleed out either. Not with her in the room," the brunette said inclining his head to the hostage huddled in the corner.
Ten, slowly nodding her head, watched as he rolled one of the sleeves into a thick pad, pressing it to her throat while he wrapped the rest of it around her neck. After a few moments of first aid most of the bleeding had been stemmed, and while the pressure on her throat wasn't exactly comfortable, it was still better than bleeding to death in the basement of a run-down hotel/casino.
"Th… Thank… you…" Ten gasped, wondering if the black smear across his eyes was just a concussion-induced hallucination.
"Don't thank me just yet," Virgil said drawing the pistol he'd duct-taped to his back -a weapon he hadn't had the opportunity to use- before ejecting one of the tranquilizers and pulling off the protective tip with his teeth. "You're still going to jail after this."
Jabbing the needle into the opposite side of her neck before she could protest, Ten let out another gasp before her body went lax and she lost consciousness, Virgil using the last of the stolen costume to wipe the blood from his face before getting back into his own pair of pants at the very least.
Everything seemingly wrapped up in a neat bow, Virgil turned his attention back to Zatanna, who was still shaking like a leaf.
"It's okay…" he said soothingly as he removed the amulet from her neck and undid the ropes. "You're safe now."
The last of the ropes coming undone, the moment she was free Zatanna threw her arms around him, burying her face into his Kevlar vest, heedless of the rounds sticking out of it.
"I… I was so scared!" the thirteen year-old wailed, trembling against his chest as she held onto him for dear life.
"I know… I was scared too…" Virgil sighed tiredly as he wrapped his arms around her, stroking the girl's hair as she cried into his vest.
"I thought… I thought they'd killed you…!" she sobbed.
"They almost did," Virgil admitted, too tired to sugar-coat it. "I'm just glad I was here with friends, otherwise I would be dead."
"I'm… *Sniff* I'm so glad you're alive," she said looking up at him with red puffy eyes, hands cupping his cheeks tenderly before her right hand came away red. "You're… you're bleeding…!" she gaped as she saw the ruined state of his left ear and the flesh wound on his right shoulder.
"Better my blood than yours…" Virgil said softly, only to grit his teeth as the pain began to hit him. "Damn… Adrenaline's running out," he muttered as he began to double over in pain, the blood letting out making him light-headed.
"Here… let's get you cleaned up…" Zatanna said as-bravely as she could around the blood, quashing down the shudder as she focused all her attention on the wound. "O gnilaeh rewop... Tsrif Dia!" she intoned willfully.
A soft green light suffusing Virgil's beaten and battered body, to his amazement the pain wracking his body ebbed away like running water. The flesh of his left ear and right shoulder knitting back together with nary a mark apart from a bit of pale-colored scarring, the bruises he no-doubt-knew were under his Kevlar similarly disappeared, the blood staining his skin simply vanishing along with the cuts and scrapes he'd accumulated that day.
"I… I'm sorry," she apologized as the light faded, her fingertips ghosting over the fresh scar tissue. "I… I wasn't strong-enough to heal you completely," she said with eyes downcast, a look of shame marring her pretty features at the self-perceived failure.
"Hey, even if you could only heal me this much, 'this much' is still pretty damn impressive," Virgil admitted as he trailed his fingers along his outer ear; any closer by any metric of measurement and he'd have lost the whole damn thing. "You don't have anything to apologize for. If anything, you should be pretty damn proud of yourself," he said stroking the top of her head with a proud smile, the brunette beaming as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him once more.
"I'm… I'm so glad…" she said as fresh tears spilled out. "I'm so glad you're okay…"
"Me too," Virgil replied as he hugged the girl back. "You were very brave, holding out as long as you did."
"Yes, but…" she trailed off. "I really thought you were gone… I thought… that it was my fault…"
"Well, I'm just glad that's not the case," Virgil sighed in turn, a tired sigh passing his lips. "Now then," he said helping her to her feet, his finger going up to his earpiece. "Roll call. Roll call. What's the status of the objective? Over."
"Soldier standing by. Hostage secured. King captured."
"Siren standing by. Queen captured."
"Yeah, I'm here. Robot's trashed and I'm eating a sandwich."
"Hunter standing by. Roof is cleared of all hostiles."
"This is… Live Bait…" Virgil groaned as he bit out the call sign he'd been given; one he'd vehemently protested but had no say in since he was the one asking for help on a matter that didn't really concern any of them. "Primary objective has been secured. Ten is captured."
"Ah sweet. You got your girl back. Way to go, Slab," Brick said between the sandwich he was apparently now eating.
"You hurt any? Need us to come pick you up?" Lilith asked.
"Strangely enough I managed not to get myself killed," Virgil reported. "Zatanna and I are wrapping things up down here, got five warm bodies to hand over to the cops. We'll be up in five."
"Alright. Leave the bodies in the lobby and make your way up to the penthouse. There's something you need to see," Roland spoke up.
"Hey! Bloodwing! Don't eat that!" Mordecai yelped before Virgil ended the call.
Hearing the words "cleared of all hostiles", it was obvious just, what, or rather, whom, Bloodwing was then-currently nibbling on.
'Not my problem. Not my problem. Not my problem,' he assured himself. "Good news, everything's all wrapped up with a neat bow, so all we've gotta do is drop off these bodies in the lobby and head on up to the penthouse."
"Thank god… I don't think I could handle another dust-up," Zatanna shivered as she looked to the fresh bullet holes scattered across the room, the scent of gunpowder acrid against her nose. "You leave the bodies to me, you just take a quick breather," she said raising the bodies up. "But first… Evig mih sehtolc!" the girl intoned, purple smoke swirling around Virgil before it parted, revealing him back in the clothes he was in pre-disguise. Only…
"Um… How am I wearing these clothes, if my clothes are still there?" he asked pointing to the goon who was still clad in the rest of his ensemble.
"Magic~" the girl replied cutely.
"Of course that's your answer," Virgil sighed, but with enough mirth to show he wasn't upset. "Wait… These clothes aren't going to up and vanish on me in the middle of the street, are they?"
"Nope~" Zatanna replied just as cutely.
"Well, seeing as how I know jack squat about magic, I'll just take your word for it…" Virgil shrugged as he ran his hands over his clothes, trying to find anything that was… well… fake about them.
*WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS*
Between the gunshots, the lasers, and the flickering of lights on the electric grid, the Royal Road had garnered more attention than the Royal Flush Gang had wanted on them.
Of course, since the whole of the gang had been incapacitated to some degree and captured, if not completely dead, what they wanted, was no longer of any consequence.
By the time the police arrived on-scene, Giovanni Zatarra, a prominent member of the Justice League, was already waiting for them in the lobby with the internationally wanted gang trussed up and ready for transport. Not everyone knew who the Royal Flush Gang was since most of the time they were gone with their loot well before the authorities were able to arrive, but for those who did know, the capture of the entire gang was a significant feat.
"Thank you for all the help," the chief of the LVPD said with a salute as the Royal Flush Gang was carted off. "Still…" he paused as four stretchers covered with tarps were wheeled by. "Was the loss of life really necessary?"
"The vigilante going up against them was just one man against four with sniper rifles, and no durability-based superpowers that could've protected him from a well-placed shot. Given the odds were stacked against him, he didn't really have much choice in the matter," Giovanni stated. "Were it not for these vigilantes, who have since vacated the premises, I might not have ever seen my daughter alive again, so I'm willing to overlook it. As a father, I can think of nothing of greater import."
"Yes, I suppose that's true," the police chief nodded as the high-end military hardware was carted off. With the advent of super-criminals in recent years since the Cold War, police had needed to become more… flexible in how they treated vigilantism. Had the GCPD not entered into their "alliance" with the Dark Knight, Gotham may've remained a hellhole of crime, murder, and vice.
Well, technically it still was all of those things, but at least now the city was actually liveable.
"If it were my kid in danger, I might be willing to look the other way when due process isn't followed as well."
"I'm glad to see they won't be troubled by this, though you have my assurance that they were only passing through," Giovanni returned. "They expressed no interest in establishing a permanent presence here."
"That's good to hear. The department's still a little iffy on this 'The House' guy, even if he is kinda harmless, but it might be hard to wave away vigilantes with serious hardware. We're just lucky the two stray rounds from the dust-off on the roof didn't hit anyone."
"A coincidence I am glad for," Giovanni hummed, remembering the sounds of sniper fire mere minutes after King had been defeated by that soldier.
"Anyway, I doubt we were equipped to handle super-criminals on this scale, so it's nice to know they won't be causing any more trouble for a good long while," the police chief went on to say.
"You're quite welcome, but I would appreciate it if your men left the premises as soon as possible," Giovanni returned.
"Oh? Why's that?" the man asked with a raised brow.
"The Royal Flush Gang left something rather… volatile upstairs, and I'd like to take care of that as soon as possible."
"We can have bomb squad out here in ten minutes," he said hastily, hand going for his radio.
"No, no, it isn't a bomb per-se, but it is something of a rather sensitive nature that the LVPD isn't really equipped to handle, so if you could vacate the premises as soon as possible with the Royal Flush Gang in tow, that'd be greatly appreciated," the League member replied, the chief of the LVPD nodding his head before he ordered everyone to double-time it out of the Royal Road.
With that done, satisfied that no-one who didn't need to be there was no longer around, Giovanni made his way back upstairs.
*WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS*
Meanwhile, back at the penthouse suite of the Royal Road, everyone else involved with the incident had gathered together, standing around the impetus for this entire shitshow. Now that the Royal Flush Gang had officially left the building, Zatanna wasn't as worried as she was before, and Virgil was finally able to get out of the ruined Kevlar vest that Ten had shot up.
While Zatanna had given him fresh clothes, apparently the ruined Kevlar was exempt from the somewhat-ambiguous nature of her spell.
Oh well. It wasn't like Virgil wanted to wear a Kevlar vest that was "used" anyway.
"Brick, why the hell are you carrying that thing around?" Virgil asked as he glanced at the thing thrown over Brick's shoulder.
"I kept it 'cause I thought it was neat," the man replied simply as he lugged around something as big as himself without any effort.
"Then why the hell does it smell like burnt hot dogs?" Virgil asked as he gave the "naked" robot a once-over. It was humanoid in shape, the bulk of it was chrome, a few scraps of white epidermal covering burnt black at the edges scattered about.
"Oh, it punched a fuse box while standing in a puddle and cut the lights for a few seconds," Brick waved off.
'So that's why the lights went out,' Virgil and Zatanna realized.
Had things not played out like that, at precisely that moment, a whole different outcome would've likely occurred.
"So, you think we'll really be good to leave?" Lilith asked. "The five of us going all vigilante justice on the RFG might not go over so well."
"As long as daddy keeps his story straight, I'm sure no one will bother you," Zatanna replied, thankful to all of them she was able to reunite with her father again.
A sentiment that was mutual in kind, hence why Giovanni was helping out the Fortune Hunters to this extent; even if the rest of the League might've frowned upon it.
By their very definition, superheroes broke the law every day, UN Charter or not, so they were given some discretion to carry on as they saw fit, provided the body count didn't get too high and no major scandals were caused.
"Alright, the police are all out of the building," Giovanni said coming back into the room in a plume of smoke. "I really can't thank you enough for all you've done. If anything had happened to my daughter, I don't know what I would've done," he said putting his arms on Zatanna's shoulders.
"Probably gone on a psychotic, magic-powered rampage that would've killed thousands."
Of course, Virgil would never say that out loud, that'd just be suicidal.
"Let's just be happy it didn't come to that," the teen eventually replied.
"Before we go any further, there's something I want to ask," Roland spoke up. "Why did the Royal Flush Gang take you of all people? Wouldn't any safe-cracker been enough?" he asked gesturing to the thing that King had been so-desperate to crack open.
"Ordinarily, yes, however…" Giovanni paused, glancing back at the safe he'd been humiliating himself before the last couple hours. "This safe was originally part of an earlier act of mine from back at the very start of my career as an illusionist. Made with a blend of mundane and magical techniques, this safe could only be opened with a special combination and tapping certain points. During the act I'd place items in the safe and make them disappear, before having a volunteer from the audience confirm it was completely empty, without any hidden panels or mirrors or the like. After that I'd make the items reappear; sometimes back in the safe, sometimes back in the pockets of their owners."
"Okay, that explains why you had to be the one to open it, but why'd the Royal Flush Gang want it so bad if it was just some magical prop?" Lilith asked.
"Well… After moving onto bigger and better illusions and feats of magic, the safe became a small-time item; barely used. Amos saw the safe in a previous act of mine and asked to buy it. Since the magic woven into the safe wasn't readily obvious, easily waved off by mechanical wizardry, it was safe to sell," Giovanni answered. "Magical items can be sold to mundanes, as long as their magical nature can be hidden and they aren't explicitly dangerous."
"And why couldn't they just cut out the door to get to its contents?" Virgil asked, having heard about King's HF Blade from Roland.
"The safe had just enough magic in it that ordinary tools couldn't destroy it, and whatever Amos put in the safe was valuable-enough that the Royal Flush Gang didn't want to risk damaging it with higher-yield explosives of safe-cutting techniques," the man answered as he himself went to work on the safe. "Of course, this was all before I knew about his connection to the Royal Flush Gang, but by that point the safe had already disappeared."
"So they wanted it becauuuuuuuuse…?" Brick asked.
"Because whatever Amos Fortune put in there, the Royal Flush Gang wanted. And they wanted it enough that they would drag my daughter into this mess," Giovanni said as he put on the final touches.
"So… what're we talkin', here?" Mordecai asked. "Gold bars? Cash? Silver? Buyer's bonds?"
"His stash of girly mags?" Brick put in hopefully.
"Only one way to find out," Giovanni said as his hand went to the dial one last time. "I'm just-as-curious as the rest of us to know why my daughter was taken," he said turning the dial back and forth, slowing to a crawl on the final digit before a *Clunk* of tumblers sounded, the handle giving way a moment later.
Everyone leaning around Giovanni, eager to see what kind of loot they had waiting for them, instead of money or gold or deeds, it was only a single platter of silver with a piece of parchment sitting atop it.
"Uhhh… I don't get it," Brick said summarizing everyone's thoughts. "What am I looking at here?"
"This is the Amos Fortune? A single scrap of paper?" Zatanna asked quizzically. "This is what I was held hostage over?"
"I think there's more to it than that. Look at this paper," Virgil said flashing a light into the confines of the safe. "This paper's yellowed and dry, it never left this safe once it was in here. Whatever it is, Amos didn't want it seeing the light of day, so it must be important… somehow."
"Well, okay, so what is it then?" Zatanna asked.
"I'm seeing two names on it," Giovanni said turning his attention to the bottom. "Amos Fortune himself and…" he paused, squinting his eyes to see if he was reading it correctly. 'Mephistophiles…?'
The next moment, the upper ridge of the paper combusted into a thin mote of blue flame, the shadows in the room darkening and thickening, stretching towards the safe like inky black fingers.
"BrrRR!" Zatanna shuddered, hands rubbing at her shoulders. "Did the room just drop ten degrees, or it is just me?" she asked suddenly. The others letting out shivers of their own, the next moment Giovanni grabbed her by the shoulder, stepping away from the safe and snapping up his wand. "W-What's going on?" she asked worriedly.
"All of you, get behind me!" the man ordered, the sheer authority in his tone forcing everyone to follow suit, hands going to their weapons as they huddled behind the younger spellcaster.
"What's going on? I don't see anything," Virgil said squinting his eyes, darting his gaze to every corner of the room as though a ravenous Infected could be hiding in any one of them.
"Zatanna! Close your eyes and cover your ears! You too, boy!" he ordered, wand tip never lowering. The adults forming a protective circle around the youngest of the group, Virgil and Zatanna clamping their eyes shut, Virgil's hands clamping down atop the girl's ears and pressing down, Zatanna dong the same, the two huddling together as the adults around them got into their battle stances.
"All of you! Weapons hot! We have company!" Lilith shouted, the rest of the Fortune Hunters drawing their firearms while Lilith summoned balls of flame to her hands, tattoos and hair coming alight.
The temperature continuing to drop around them, condensation began to form across the windows and glass surfaces scattered across the room. A numbingly-cold fog spreading across the floor, chilling everyone to the bone, the fog began to gather around the safe as the flickering blue flames from within cast impossibly-long shadows. As the last of the flames died, the light within the room was slowly and steadily leeched away, even the light of the sun outside seeming to dim around them, the adults readying their weapons as a translucent figure came to stand before them.
Standing at five foot eight, the figure had dark brown eyes that were weary to the world, short black hair soaked with sweat and stressed. Dressed in a white robe with a wide sash around a wide waist, the robe was marked with a horseshoe fore luck as well as an ankh; the Egyptian symbol of life. The translucent figure stood motionless in the cold fog and darkness for a few moments, but slowly his face became animated with emotion, the contours of his face filling with fear as his eyes began to dart from shadow to impossibly-dark shadow.
A spine-chilling screech filling the room, Zatanna let out a terrified yelp as she dove into Virgil's chest, trembling uncontrollably, a pitiful whine leaving her lips. In turn, Virgil held the shuddering teen close, every inch of his body morphing into gooseflesh and every hair of his body standing on-end as something descended upon the room.
Something that didn't belong in the world of the living.
Something with a hunger most-terrible and vast, like the yawn of the abyss itself.
The faintest scent of smoke, and rot, and ash filling the room, the shadows across the room began to stretch towards the ghostly figure before the battle-readied group. The infinitely-black shadows beginning to contort and twist as they rose into the air, they began to morph into tall humanoid figures, each dressed in robes of smoke and shadows, bony hands reaching toward the panicking spirit as the points of their claws absorbed the nearby light even more, pinpricks of absolute darkness forming at the ends of those horrifying instruments.
The shadows grabbing onto the struggling spirit, their strength boundless and absolute, the spirit of Amos Fortune himself let out a horrified yell as judgement was rendered. Though his screams were long and blood-curdling, to those that couldn't hear its true sound, they were instead greeted by a howling wind, the fog blanketing the floor was drawn into the shadows, sucked in like the yawn of a dark god. The cloaked wraiths of smoke and shadow vanishing completely with their prey, there was a brief rumble through the air before light and warmth flooded the room, the horrifying presence vanishing.
"Is… Is it over…?" Zatanna asked, basking in the sudden warmth as some semblance of normalcy returned to that place.
"Yes… It's over," Giovanni sighed, his shoulders sagging and his wand falling to the floor from now-drained hands. "It's finally over."
Lilith letting out a terrified gasp and shudder, Roland wrapped his arms around her and held the woman close. Brick, his muscles drawn taut like springs, slowly relaxed as the skin atop the back of his neck ceased to crawl. Mordecai, glancing at the dark shadows in the once-darkest corner of the room, down to his beer, and back-again to the once-darkest corner of the room, Mordecai looked down to his beer a second time before looking the others dead in the eye.
"That's it. No more beer until this trip's over," Mordecai thought as he chucked his beverage over his shoulder, struggling to convince himself that what he saw was just an alcohol-induced hallucination.
"Dad… What just happened?" Zatanna asked between a terrified shudder, the girl calming as the older teen next to her soothingly stroked her hair.
"Nothing, sweetie. It was a false alarm," he said giving her his best smile.
"Bull SHIT it was a false alarm!" Virgil bit out as he involuntarily drew Zatanna closer. "I felt like every inch of my skin was about to crawl off! What the hell did we just miss?!" he demanded.
"Kid… It's better if you don't know," Lilith said putting a hand on his shoulder. "At least… not until you're older… okay?"
" . . . Giovanni, what the hell was that thing?" he asked turning to the paper, which was now gone save a neat pile of ash.
"Like your friend said… It's better you don't know," Giovanni said, moving over to close the door.
"Ah, wait, before you close up for good!" Virgil said fishing a familiar amulet from his pocket. "Since you're the only one who knows how to pick that thing, mind if I chuck this in there? I certainly don't want it, and if your daughter sees this again she might have a flashback."
"Hmmm. In a weird way…" Giovanni said palming the amulet before turning to the safe he'd made, "this is strangely appropriate," he said gingerly laying the amulet to the side of the platter before sealing the safe with his magic. Hopefully, for good.
*WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS*
With the mystery behind "Amos' Lost Fortune" solved and the police long-since vacated, the Fortune Hunters were free to leave the Royal Road. Before they could go back to the Caesar's Palace however, Giovanni had invited the lot of them to the Bellagio to receive compensation for all they'd done. The Fortune Hunters, being mercenaries at heart, weren't about to turn such a thing down like quote/unquote "altruists" would, so with that in mind the group of five accompanied the pair of magicians back to their own penthouse.
In transit, they saw the same guy from before being forced into a police cruiser, a certain sense of satisfaction washing over Virgil at the sight as the guy that'd obstructed them was taken away.
It wouldn't be until much later that he learned the guy had racked up massive gambling debts, and the Royal Flush Gang had purchased his loyalty in their endeavor by paying it off for him.
"Because of course that's why he did this." -Virgil would lament later.
The Fortune Hunters made for a rather odd group within the Bellagio, but with Giovanni's assurance that they were his "entourage", none of them were bothered on their way to the penthouse. As soon as they'd arrived however, Giovanni was called back down by management who had inquired about his sudden departure, so with an offer to all the contents of the fridge and amenities of the room made, Giovanni left the Fortune Hunters to their own devices as he put out one more fire.
"God… Feels like forever since I've just sat down," the girl sighed, throwing herself tiredly onto the sofa the moment the doors had been locked.
"Tell me about it…" Virgil sighed, adopting a similar pose. "How you holdin' up?"
"I'm fine. Just… I guess I'm still processing the fact that I could've died back there," the girl admitted. "I'm glad you're alright. When we got separated, I was so worried about you."
"Yeah, well…" Virgil hummed, looking to the Fortune Hunters as they milled about the room, Brick and Mordecai raiding the fridge for food and beer respectively. "Let's just say it helps to have friends that kick ass and take names."
"Yeah, it really does…" the girl replied with a smile, casting a glance his way. "Thanks again. For coming back for me."
"Hey, I'm sure you would've done the same if I were in your shoes. And, you'd have probably done a better job of it."
"O-Oh please, don't give me that much credit! I'm still a fledgling magi! Nowhere near my dad's skill level!"
"Maybe, but it's not like you can't train and get better," Virgil said grabbing a throw pillow and putting it over his eyes. "Wake me up when your dad gets back. I'm gonna take a power nap."
Before the magical girl could give her reply however, Virgil was already out like a light and snoring lightly.
*WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS*
"Daddy! You're back!" Zatanna suddenly called out a while later, shaking Virgil awake as the man strode in.
"Sorry it took so long. I had to assure the Bellagio that tomorrow' show was still on," the man apologized, before turning his attention to the Fortune Hunters. "Thank you for rescuing my daughter. If you hadn't taken care of the Royal Flush Gang, there's no telling what would have happened to her," he said putting a hand on his daughter's shoulder.
"It wasn't all us," Roland countered. "Virgil was the one to lead the charge, the rest of us just followed his lead," Roland said, putting a hand on the teen's shoulder and pushing him forward.
"Ah, I see," Giovanni realized. Batman's own sidekick was even younger, so it wasn't like someone had to be an adult to rescue people and lead the charge. "Your friends must think very highly of you, and my daughter seems to trust you a great deal," he said turning his attention to the boy, eyes momentarily catching the traces of lingering Healing Magic on the boy's body from where his daughter had treated him. "Is there anything I can do for you to express my thanks? Anything you want?"
"Do you actually mean that, or are you just saying it?" Virgil questioned.
"I wholeheartedly mean it," the man replied. "My daughter told me you threw yourself over her to shield her from a grenade, and that you got shot up pretty badly while rescuing her. That kind of bravery, that spirit of self-sacrifice, shouldn't go unrewarded."
"Hmmmm… Well…" Virgil hummed, suddenly feeling everyone's eyes on him, Zatanna's more than anyone else's. "I want to learn magic."
"Really?" Giovanni asked, his brows crawling into his hairline. "Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to-"
"And I'm not talking that stage magic that's just for show. I mean the real deal magic. Not that fake stuff."
"Oh…? Oh!" the man said in realization, now knowing the boy was dead-serious; and that he actually believed in magic enough to ask for such a thing. "Are you sure you don't want an autograph from a member of the Justice League? That's an option too, you know."
"No, I'd rather have magic up my sleeve," Virgil answered with a polite nod. "I don't worship the ground the Justice League walks on if that needs saying, so can you teach me or not?"
"Well… I can teach you," the man admitted. "It's just… Magic comes with a cost?"
"Like what? My immortal soul?"
"Oh heaven's forbid no!" Giovanni shuddered, thinking back to that yellowed parchment with cryptic blood-colored writing atop a silver platter. "It's just… Hecate, the Goddess of Magic, was betrayed by the very people she taught magic to, so after that point, she always attached some form of karmic punishment for all magic users."
"Punishment like what?"
"From what I've seen of my peers, all it does is amplify a pre-existing problem," the man answered. "Sometimes it's a very small thing, like having a hard time with door knobs, but others… are significantly more inconvenienced by Hecate."
"What'd magic do to you?"
"Nothing yet," the man answered, "and that's what worries me," he said as the familiar cold fingers of the unknown grabbed at the back of his thoughts. "John Constantine, a somewhat well-known occultist, was more or less thrown under the bus by Hecate, which is why I feel I should warn you about magic's price."
"In what way?"
"Oh, nothing too big. Just the numerous failures across his life and the dismemberment of his close friends and family on both physical and spiritual levels," the man answered casually. "Constantine has a bit of a reputation for having his adventures end like the 'bad endings' of horror movies."
"Well… What do you think magic will do to me?"
After hearing about what happened to Constantine at Whitecastle, he wanted to be doubly-sure if learning magic was worth the risk.
"Well… I don't really know you all that well, but seeing as how you got drawn into all this trouble with the Royal Flush Gang… I'd say if you go any farther down this rabbit hole, you'd simply gain a raised propensity for being drawn into more trouble."
"More trouble? I got dragged into crap like this well before today," Virgil said with an indignant huff. "Last month I almost got run down by a possessed muscle car. Next month I'll probably get wrapped up in something equally or even more ridiculous. So the way I see it, having a legit magic trick or two up my sleeve will actually give me a better chance of surviving all that crazy bullshit."
"Ah… So then you're really set on this?" he asked, wondering if whether or not he might accidentally create the next Felix Faust, or something even worse with the modern world at his fingertips.
"Hey, it isn't just my survival I'm doing this for," Virgil huffed. "Based on how-secretive you homo-"
"Ha!"
"-magi are," Virgil said ignoring Brick's chortle, "the only way I can stay friends with Zatanna is if I'm magical too."
"You'd really throw the dice for me?" Zatanna asked, eyes lighting up.
"Of course. We're friends, aren't we?" Virgil asked, his features softening.
"Yeah, we definitely are," Zatanna replied happily, face brightening.
"Well… I guess there isn't anything wrong with having more friends," Giovanni hummed.
The only reason he hadn't introduced his daughter to the other League members' proteges was because he wanted to keep his daughter away from Villains. At least for as long as possible.
Now that she'd tread onto that slippery slope with the Royal Flush Gang, he wondered how long he could keep her from taking the big plunge. The girl was strong-willed like her mother, so if she really did want to become a superhero, he could only keep her back from that for so long before he eventually caved.
Plucking the top hat from atop his head, Giovanni reached in before producing a yellowed scroll with a wax seal holding it closed. "This, is a Spell Scroll," he introduced. "Containing the Ardescat spell, this is the first magic all homo-magi ever learn. Think of it as an introduction to magic," he said handing it over. "The spell itself is only as-powerful as a lighter, but the ability to learn this spell is like the primer to determine whether or not one has the affinity for magic."
"So… Do I just read this thing beginning-to-end or-"
Breaking the seal on the yellowed scroll, the moment its arcane writings were exposed, a luminous glow began to spill out of the ink, embery motes of light alighting from the paper before a tide of golden fire suddenly spilled out. Everything in his vision turning gold, ancient runic symbols danced across his eyes, ancient knowledge from ages past etching itself into his mind and soul. Feeling a hand on his shoulder, an enormous presence like that of a giant laying eyes on him before turning away just-as-suddenly, when the maelstrom of golden light and letters came to an end Virgil found himself falling onto his butt, the scroll once held in his hands alighting itself with golden fire as it self-immolated, not even ash touching the floor in its passing.
"Uh… What…?"
"Ah, I probably should have mentioned it's a one-time-use item," Giovanni apologized, offering his hand to help the young man to his feet. "Like the Skill Books commonly found in table top games," he said thinking back to his younger days when such things bad started to become popular.
"So… that's it? I just know magic?"
"Well, why don't you give it a shot," Giovanni offered.
"Is… Is that even safe?" Roland asked, looking around the expensive-looking suite.
"It's perfectly safe…" the man said confidently before trailing off, a flick of his wand summoning a fire extinguisher from the kitchen. "More or less. As long as we're prepared, you won't set the carpet on fire," he amended as he got the nozzle ready, eyes glancing at Zatanna briefly.
"You're never going to let me live that down, are you?" she pouted.
" . . . " Raising up his hand, focusing on the freshly-etched knowledge with closed eyes, feeling the ancient wisdom come to him, the teen extended his arm, middle fingers and thumbs pressed together before calling out- "Ardescat." -with a snap of his fingers, a tiny flame of light spontaneously combusting from the air before his index finger.
"Oooohhh…" Brick hummed in awe as he reached out to touch it, only to recoil with an- "Ow! What gives?"
"It might be small, but it is still a magical flame," Giovanni chastised. "Magical flames typically don't conform to the conventional laws of physics."
"In what way?" Lilith asked.
"Basically, magical fire can still burn underwater or even in a vacuum," Zatanna answered. "This is going to be so much fun, having someone else to learn magic with!" she then said excitedly as her eyes turned toward Virgil.
"Hold your horses, Z. Let's get the hang of this first before I dive into anything else," Virgil said waggling his finger up and down, the mote of flame trailing after it.
"You're taking this sudden revelation… extremely nonchalantly," Giovanni hummed. Usually, non-magi learning magic for the first time were more… excited.
"It's just like Arthur C. Clarke once said. 'Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic'," Virgil quoted. "A hundred years ago, a modern-day lighter would've gotten you burned at the stake for witchcraft, unironically. The way I see it, science and magic are just two sides of the same coin; wisdom being used to create or change something. Science and magic can make fire, but in the end, fire is still fire, magic-borne or not. Magical fire just has more 'bells and whistles' attached."
"Huh… You know, not all magi would agree with that sentiment," Giovanni hummed.
"They'll get with the program eventually," Virgil shrugged. "If you don't grow and evolve, you're only doomed to obsolescence. It's part of why so many people are afraid of Metas and Mutants; normal people think they'll lose their value to the gene pool, which is why they're so-willing to be racist like the Nazis."
"You… are not like most young men your age," Giovanni realized after hearing the young man speak.
He should've realized it when his daughter told him Virgil had shielded her from what he assumed was a live grenade.
But it was after hearing him speak that he realized, this wasn't just any ordinary boy.
"No… No I'm not," Virgil replied, sounding as though he were lamenting the loss of something precious.
Something he could never get back.
"Anyway, what are you going to do now?" he asked.
"Well, given the Justice League came in to stop Solomon Grundy, and the Royal Flush Gang have been stopped, I'm pretty sure no-one too high-up on the villain foodchain will make an appearance, so I sincerely believe the rest of our stay in Las Vegas will be uneventful," he said turning his eyes to his daughter. "If you're interested, I can give you some backstage passes for my show. It's the least I can do for all your work."
"And in the morning, we can all go sightseeing!" Zatanna said looking Virgil in the eye.
'Oh boy,' Lilith chuckled to herself, seeing the look in the girl's eye.
The look of a girl that'd fallen for a boy, and fallen for him hard.
Her phone vibrating in her pocket, she turned away from the proceedings to answer the call, stepping away from the conversation at hand. The conversation was short and to the point, but by the end the woman's shoulders were sagging. "Guys… Bad news…" she spoke up. "The Caesar's Palace just called. They said they're evicting us from our room."
"What? Why?" Brick whined.
"Maybe because of the crazy-ass party? Or the tiger? Or the crazy-ass party and the tiger?" Virgil quipped sarcastically.
"And the hookers. We can't forget the hookers," Brick hummed matter-of-factly.
"Remind me not to touch anything on the way back," Virgil groaned.
"You know, since you did save the Bellagio's main attraction for the week, maybe we can get you a place here," Zatanna offered.
"We can?" her father asked, the look his daughter sent him causing him to reiterate that utterance. "I mean, of course we can," he amended, thinking back to how-forceful the girl's mother could be.
"Well, that solves that problem at least," Virgil sighed with relief, happy they wouldn't have to go through another crazy-ass adventure just to find a new place to stay. "Speaking of problems," he said walking over to Giovanni before dragging him down to eye level by his bowtie. "GET. YOUR. KID. A. GOD. DAMN. CELL PHONE!" he said as he angrily mock-slapped the man across the face, if only so he had the man's complete-and-undivided attention.
"SLAB! WHAT'RE YOU DOING?! THAT MAN CAN TURN YOU INSIDE-OUT WITH HIS TESSERACT SPELL!" Brick cried in a panic.
"I'm surprised you even know what a Tesseract is," Virgil lamented non-sarcastically. "Secondly," he said turning his attention back to the stunned superhero. "I don't care what your reasoning is! If your kid doesn't have a cell phone by the end of the end of this weekend, I'm going to strangle you so hard, Giovanni Junior looks like three parts of the BLUE MAN GROUP!"
"Wha…?"
"If I didn't happen upon your daughter earlier today, neither of you might've made it out of the Royal Road alive, let alone your daughter! I don't care what bullshit reasons you have for her being the only teenage girl in America to not have a cell phone, you give her the ability to contact you at a moment's notice, OR SO HELP ME!"
"Well he's certainly passionate about this," Lilith hummed.
"Yeah… He really is~" Zatanna sighed wistfully.
'Knew it,' Lilith sighed to herself. "Of course, Virgil has a kid sister right around your age, so that may be part of why he's so intent on this."
"Well?! Do you understand these demands as they've been spoken to you!?"
"I… Well…" Giovanni stammered, unsure what to make of all that. "Zatanna never needed a cell phone before. She could always borrow a friend's phone at school or-"
"Well that shit's not gonna fly anymore! If your daughter's magic gets cancelled again, she could wind up dead without a way to call for backup!"
"We'll… just leave you to it," Roland said slowly backing away. "It seems like you have a lot to talk about, so we'll just get all our gear together and meet you back here."
"Zatanna, why don't you come with us?" Lilith offered. "Virgil might not be able to say everything he has on his mind if you're still around. Mixed company and all that."
"Sure…" Zatanna replied, her feelings growing mixed between his heroic, almost gallant actions, and the fact that the "kid sister" angle had just come up. "We'll be right back, daddy! Take care, Virgil!" she said to the two.
"Don't worry, she couldn't be in safer hands," Lilith assured, the door closing behind them right as Giovanni was dragged to a sofa by the ear and sat down before Virgil took the seat across from him, tenting his hands in front of his face as he leveled a stare at the man, who was still reeling at both the way he'd been cowed, and the pressure this sixteen-year-old was exuding.
"Now that we're alone… Why don't you tell me all about how homo-magi raise their kids and whether or not those old-and-dated conditions might get their kids killed in the modern world."
'I suppose if there's any consolation to be found, it's that he's giving off a brotherly vibe instead of that of a boy 'only after one thing',' Giovanni thought to himself, finding some solace in this turn of events.
Given this was the closest his baby girl had come to dying at the hands of super-criminals, part of it being because his daughter had no way of contacting him because of his own traditionalist stance as a parent born and raised in the magical world, it might be time to soundboard some of his parenting techniques against someone with a modern take on things. Nothing wrong with a single father getting a helping hand in that regard.
Even if that help was coming from a teenage boy.