156 The Final Act Part 7

30 advance chapters in my Pat.reon. Pat.reon.com/Saintbarbido.

Gimme 🙏🙏🙏🙏 Your Powerstones People.

::----------------------------------------------::

(Aden's P.O.V)

"Wait. Let's backtrack and just stop. Leaving alone the fact that what you're asking is an impossibly stupid idea, where is the helmet of Fate?"

Green Arrow interrupted Zatara, before could answer.

I turned my eyes to the archer.

"It's someplace safe. Where no one is going to use it for evil."

He scoffed.

"And we're supposed to take your word for it? Hand it over kid."

I sighed. Looking at the rest of the League, it was apparent they agreed with Arrow.

"Look, I don't want you to take my word for it. Don't trust in what I say, trust in my actions. I rescued you didn't I? If I wanted to use the helmet for selfish reasons why would I go to the trouble of getting you guys out?"

In timely intervention, chatter came through Bat's earpiece. The strange thing was that I couldn't really hear it. Even with my super senses. An energy field that disrupted soundwaves from reaching a person a short distance away? Probably.

"Copy." He then turned his gaze to Martian Manhunter. J'onn's eyes glowed green and fluctuations of mental energy told me he had just formed a link with all the Leaguers present.

Green Arrow sighed.

"It's like clockwork, isn't it? I swear...they have to have a tracker that tells them whenever we are occupied."

I frowned.

"And am guessing I'm not allowed to know what's going on? This is like summer camp all over again." Saying that, the attention was back to me. Though they all seemed less focused.

"Just give us the helmet. You have no idea the kind of havoc you can unleash by using it."

I shook my head at Hal.

"Look am not trying to be difficult. It's just from where I'm standing...there's no one better to hold it other than me. For starters, I am already powerful enough without it. And secondly...Nabu cannot control me. You even saw it for yourselves. Ask Zatara...he knows that I'm telling the truth."

The middle aged magician seemed to have swallowed a bitter lime when put on the spot, unable to refute my words.

"It is true, only Nabu can release you once you have placed the helmet onto your head. But, be that as it may, the helmet is a mystical object of untold power. It should not be in the hands of a child. The power Nabu promises might be too alluring to say no to."

The helmet appeared in my hands from the hammerspace.

"Alluring?" I chuckled. "He can allure all he wants. I'm planning to use it as a vase."

Then I sent it back to the hammerspace just to prove a point. Damn... I'm bad.

"You need to stop constantly challenging the League's authority. Using our own principles to get away with things will not always work, Aden. Make sure you don't slip up." Batman cut in gruffly. He was right. I was acting kinda immature but...they were pissing me off. Here I was trying to secure Zatara's help to save someone from a fate worse than death but they wanted to focus on the fucking helmet. I could do way more damage than Nabu even could. Maybe. Probably.

I snorted.

"And you guys fail at getting your priorities straight but, I am not going to waste time arguing with you. As I just explained, a friend is in grave danger and instead of focusing on that...you want to repeat the same old dance. If Zatara helps me out...we can talk about the helmet then."

There was a brief silence before a thoughtful look appeared on Wonder Woman's face.

"Very well. You can keep the helmet with you."

She gave a pointed look to Green Arrow and he swallowed his uproar.

"For the time being, that is. But be aware, we shall revisit this issue at a later date. When things have calmed down considerably."

She warned.

I nodded and turned to Zatara.

"Well, are you going to help me save a certain centuries old Brit with the Spirit of a demon imprisoned within him from hell?"

Zatara's eyes went wide.

"Blood."

The first place we stopped by was Madame Xanadu's shop in New Orleans. The beautiful fortune teller did not seem the least bit surprised by our visit.

"Giovanni, it has been too long."

She said, getting up and hugging the magician. Zatara's face split up in a soft smile as well, happy to see Xanadu.

"Nimue, still as radiant as a rose in full bloom."

He said with a bow, making me roll my eyes at the flirting I was about to be exposed to.

"Not to be a buzz kill or anything but...I doubt Blood is enjoying his tan in hell. That place does not seem like a good vacation spot, you know?"

That sobered them up pretty quickly, though I noticed an annoyed glint in Zatara's eyes. I sent him an apologetic look for breaking the bro-code and cock blocking him. His eyes showed me he accepted my apology and that he was ready to leave it all in the past and move on...or that was all just in my head because I was totally bored when the two of them started triangulating Blood's location through arcane means, while throwing around magical theories, speculations and words that a noob like me could barely understand.

Not the first time I wondered if I should learn Magic, then after remembering that it would take me away from mastering my own abilities, I shelved that idea for later. Stuck with nothing to do and buzzing with nervous energy as the two Mystical practitioners talked, I walked around Xanadu's shop just looking at stuff. I arrived before a shelf with old antique books written in runes.

"Don't."

Zatara's voice came, making me curl my outstretched fingers into a fist and letting the hand fall. Sour puss. I left the book shelf and moved on to another one which housed a row of potions. This shelf I could tell was for show. There was a vial labelled Love Potion, another labelled good luck charm and a few other mainstream potions. Things that a normal magic enthusiast would be all gung-ho about. I raised my eyebrows at a particularly eye catching pink potion labelled Aphrodisiac and turned to look at Madame Xanadu in question. The mystical woman felt my gaze and winked at me.

Ooookay.Gotta pay the bills somehow and I don't doubt that few things would sell faster than magical Viagra. Fortunately, it didn't take long for them to divine Blood's last location. Which had also given me enough time to think a lot about my plan once I arrived in hell. If the mission's difficulty was any indication, this was not going to be a cake walk.

"Alright, let's move. The sooner we are done with this the sooner I can go see my daughter."

Zatara said.

"You have a daughter?"

I asked in feigned interest. The look he gave me made me raise my hands up.

"Whoa, mother bear...I didn't mean anything by that."

He snorted as we made it out of the shop. Of course I knew he had a daughter, it's hard to forget Zatanna. Beautiful and much more powerful than even her dad...what is not easy to recall about that? but there's a certain thing people do called making conversation and Zatara was one of my favorite characters that didn't have something tragic happen to him like all the time, as it seemed to do with most Superheroes. Dude was chill. Could perform magic tricks and had a banging daughter. So yes, I wanted to get to know him better as a person. Plus the real reason could be summed up in one word...MDP.

We made it to an abandoned alley and stopped. A look of concentration appeared on Zatara's face as he held up a necklace with a red gemstone in the shape of a tear before him. An object infused with a charm to locate someone.

"Nees tsal saw Jason Blood erehw ot su tropelet!"

There was a shimmer in the air before we disappeared and found ourselves falling from midair. I slowed us down through airbending and we floated downwards towards the ominous jungle below us.

We stepped down on the moss covered ground, just as the pendant in his hands glowed brighter towards one direction. Our left.

"Where are we?"

I questioned.

"Somewhere in the Amazon rainforest. If I had to hazard a guess...near Peru."

Mosquitos were already buzzing around me.

"Why would Blood come here?"

I wondered, trudging after him through the foliage.

"Places like these contain what we call, old power. This, girl he was pursuing must have been searching for something."

I nodded before adding.

"Angel."

Zatara threw me a glance.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I sensed angelic presence in her and Blood explained that she was an angel bound to a human girl by the cult of Neron. An angel called Cerial."

I could see his interest.

"Constantine chose to take her in because she had nowhere else to go."

At the name drop, his hand tightened imperceptibly.

"Oh... Is that right?"

"Yes." I stopped him with a loose grab, thinking of something.

"So I'm guessing you're quite aware of what you're getting yourself into."

He gave a nod and turned to proceed forward. I didn't let go.

"It's going to be dangerous, demonic and dastardly. That's 2 more D's than needed to explain how fucked up its going to get Zatara." I insisted to which the magician asked dryly,

"What's your point?"

"I know that look on your face. You hero types are all the same. You intend to follow me to hell, don't you?"

The silence all but confirmed it.

"Look Zatara...I know you know that I know you don't need me to explain to you how much of a baaad idea that is."

I stressed out the word bad.

"I am coming with you and that is final." He stated, shrugging off my hold to walk away.

I blocked his path by standing infront of him, our eyes level. Though he seemed a bit shorter than me, emphasizing just how tall I had gotten.

"I know your honor or ideals compel you to want to go with me but trust me...this is unlike any mission you have ever gone to."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Are you insinuating I am incompetent?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Stop trying to look for ways to change the subject Zatara. In case I haven't made it clear, are you ready to leave your daughter all alone?"

His gaze instantly turned sharp.

"Yes... because that is exactly what is going to happen if you follow me. I will be facing hell lords."

At that some of his conviction died out.

"You're not a coward for staying back and choosing your daughter Zatara. Let me do this alone. I am more than powerful enough to escape if things go south."

He sighed.

"You do not understand. Blood...he saved my life once. What kind of friend would I be, if I leave my debts and favors unpaid?"

I nodded in understanding.

"Blood told me about that. And...he traded that favor over to me for saving his life as well."

Zatara looked up a bit surprised.

"We had deal that he couldn't... complete due to some urgent matters."

I waved my hand to indicate I was talking about this whole thing.

"So he told me to look for you and ask for a favor. For Chronozon."

Zatara sucked in a breath.

"That is double the reason why I should not let you go alone."

I shook my head.

"No,no. Look, you can repay your favor to me when am back. I don't need your help for this. I am more than prepared, are you?"

Zatara snorted.

"I am a member of the Justice League. I'm always prepared."

"Ok first of all, it's called humility. Learn it sometime." I tild him with a huff. "Secondly, Goddamit Zatara, think of the time difference. 1 day here might be a week there. Can you go that long without seeing your precious daughter?" He looked thoughtful at that so I pressed on.

"Not to mention, what if I get stuck there and need someone to pull me out?"

Zatara looked indignant but couldn't argue against that. Finally, he sighed and nodded.

"Alright, I cannot believe I'm saying this but you win, my boy."

I sighed in relief.

"Good. Now how about we get this show on the road?"

We kept on walking for a few more meters before arriving at an open area in the jungle that looked absolutely devastated. Instantly, my senses were assaulted by a torrential pool of power. Natural magic even greater than could be found in the swamp where Poison Ivy and the Injustice League had made their base. So much mystical energy seemed to undulate in this space.

The area also seemed to have the debris and ruin from an ancient settlement. I wasn't as familiar with ancient civilizations so I was stumped. Clearly, Blood had followed Allyssa here for something.

But for what exactly was the question. One I didn't know we could answer seeing as a nuclear bomb seemed to have gone off there. The fallen trees were still smoking and the ground was heavily scorched. The faint smell of sulphur was also prevalent in the area.

"My God."

Zatara said, bending down and running his finger through the charred ground.

"This ash... it's the remains of a demon exorcised back to hell. A fight occured here."

He informed me before moving a short distance away.

Zatara sucked in a deep breath. I hurried to where he was and widened my eyes as well. There... on the ground was a pentagram or the remains of one. He bent down to study it before frowning and holding up the pendant.

"It's this... but on a larger scale."

I bent down as well.

"You mean a locator spell?"

"Yes. I can't tell much from the rest of the magic circle but it was global wide locator spell for something. Probably the fountain."

I nodded. It made sense. Blood had said that she had stolen something from him, a Star Compass. An object that could help someone locate places with a high density of magic. Could this be where the compass had led Allyssaand Blood as well. I relayed that information to Zatara and he nodded.

"Yes. This whole area sings with the magic of the old powers. It's a nexus. A node in the leylines. Using a locator spell here could give you the necessary amount of magic to increase the range to a planetary scale. It was what she was planning on to find out the location of the Fountain of Imperium." He rubbed a little bit of soot away and pointed at the edge of the magic array where a few runes were curved.

"Look at this place...it says "Lead me to that which cannot be found, hidden deep under layers of magic...the rest of it is unreadable. But that statement alone..."

"Speaks volume on what her intentions were. And then something happened."

I concluded.

"Yes. My guess is that they started fighting and were ambushed by demons. It would make sense that the cult of Neron would keep an eye on her, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Or maybe it was a different faction. Lord knows Blood does not have fans down there. If they found a way to bring him back to hell, they would definitely do it."

Zatara sadly made a lot of sense. And with a start,I realized that Neron might be one of the demons I would face.

"Now what?"

I Wondered. Zatara had not really given me the full details about his objectives.

"Now, I collect a sample of Blood's energy signature before I start fully preparing you to go to hell."

He shook his head as if he couldn't believe the words coming out of his mouth. On the other hand I was confused.

"Wait, wait... I thought you were simply going to open the portal or teleport me there once we got here."

I pointed out, feeling a bit disappointed.

Zatara levelled a gaze at me that made me feel like an idiot.

"Hell is infinitely large. If I created a portal or teleported you there without using a beacon to ensure you appeared as close to Blood as you could, you could be wondering around... lost. This is not an exact science. Magic is fickle and needs to be taken seriously. So be patient and let me make the necessary preparations."

I took a second to internalize his answer before sighing and running a hand down my face.

"Okay...okay. Yeah you're right. I'm just worried that the longer we leave him there..."

The rest of the words went unsaid. Zatara stood up with a serious look on his face.

"Believe me I understand. But... your safety is important as well, my boy. If you can't do this the right way, then you are not only dooming him but also yourself."

I looked at his sincere eyes and finally agreed with a nod.

"Excellent." Zatara smiled. "Next stop, my house."

He cast the teleportation spell and I felt a thick film of magic pass over me, before we appeared inside a big personal library. Maybe this delay wasn't such a bad thing. I needed to inform Iroh, the twins and Breeze that I'd be gone for a while anyway.

"Daddy!"

A surprised voice came in through the doorway. Turning our attention to the source, I could immediately see that Zatanna had to have more resemblance to her mother than she did with her dad. For instance, Zatara had green eyes while zatanna's eyes were a bright blue.

All in all, this girl was more than comic book pretty, she would grow up to be beautiful and the magic coming off of her was bigger than Zatara's even at her age. Just...less refined and crude.

"Oh Zatanna my darling daughter."

Zatara closed the distance between them faster than the Flash and hugged her gently. He stepped back and looked at her sternly.

"Did you finish your homework?"

The girl rolled her eyes.

"Of course, if you can even call it that. Dad...I want something challenging. Something truly worthy of my time and effort."

Zatara did not look convinced. He must have been immune to the puppy eyes she was currently using.

"You will get there in time, Zatanna. Magic is..."

"Fickle and should not be wielded carelessly. Yes, I've been hearing that since I was 7."

She said in a little frustration.

"So you do listen?"

The older magician said with a snort.

"Occasionally." She stated cheekily. Then her gaze turned to me and our eyes made contact. She scrutinized me, before looking at her dad and asking in confusion,

"Why can't you hang around less weird people dad? First the League and now the Cape Killer."

I felt like laughing at the insinuation. Yup, Zatanna was nothing like her dad.

3230 words. Join my Pat.reon for even longer chapters