CHAPTER 119
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[David Lance POV]
I jumped through the portal Raven had opened, landing on the other side, an elevator.
"Hello there," Kent greeted, a friendly smile on his face.
I blinked, looking around, trying to find Raven, but besides Kent and myself, there was no one else around.
"If you are looking for your friend," Kent continued as if he could read my mind. "She is on her way up but through another path."
I nodded, still trying to wrap my head around how easy Klarion had dealt with us a few moments ago; as I pondered over that, the elevator dinged, and the doors opened, revealing another room full of stairs that led to nowhere.
I'm honestly starting to hate magic.
"Bolt!" Raven's voice called out, snapping me out of my thoughts.
I turned to see her running towards me, a relieved look on her face. "I'm glad you're okay."
~Barely,~ I nodded before noticing the rest of the team was also there. ~Sorry, I must have worried everyone.~
"You did," Artemis said, coming to stand next to me.
"What happened?" Robin asked, his eyes narrowed in concern.
~Klarion,~ I replied, that being all the answer Robin needed to freeze in place.
"Bolt, are you sure you're okay?" Miss Martian asked worriedly as Superboy crossed his arms behind her, letting out a breath of relief from what I could see; it looked like he was worried about me.
I nodded.
"While the reunion is touching," Kent interrupted, tapping his cane on the ground to get our attention. "But, I'm afraid we don't have much time."
"What do you mean?" Wally asked.
"He means me," Klarion's voice came from above us, answering Wally's question.
"Unfortunately, he's right," Kent sighed, looking up at Klarion.
"Now, where's the helmet, old man?" Klarion demanded, his eyes narrowed in anger as he looked at Kent.
"I'm afraid I don't quite remember, you know, part of being old," Kent said calmly before tapping the ground with his cane again, creating a portal behind him. "Follow me."
Kent walked through the portal, vanishing from sight.
"Come on!" Robin called out, running towards the portal.
"No, no, no!" Klarion called out, flying towards the portal as we made our way to it, but Raven was already ahead of him, shooting a beam of magic at the ground in front of Klarion, halting him for just the right amount of time, allowing us to escape him.
"Running around won't defeat him or work for much longer," Raven said, giving Kent a stern look as the portal closed.
"I know," Kent nodded, his face solemn. "But, it will give me enough time to collect the helmet."
~M'gann,~ I signed, getting her attention. ~Make a connection again.~
M'gann nodded before making a mental connection with everyone. -Done.-
-Someone asks Kent if he knows any weakness of Klarion.- If anyone knew how to deal with that overpowered menace, it was Kent. He had fought the obnoxious Chaos Lord longer than all of us have been alive, well, Dr. Fate had, but that's basically the same thing, hopefully.
-No need to ask. The young lady connected me as well,- Kent replied before tapping his cane on the ground twice. -As for how to deal with Klarion, well... we can't; only Dr. Fate can. We can slow Klarion down, but only Dr. Fate can truly fight him.-
It's official, I hate magic now.
-Without Nabu, our best shot would be to destroy Klarion's familiar, but that would only stop him momentarily, though to be fair, there's no permanent fix for a Chaos Lord. Nabu simply lasts longer, I suppose,- Kent explained as he continued to tap his cane on the ground.
-What's with the tapping?- Superboy asked, giving Kent a look.
-It helps me concentrate,- Kent replied distractedly, still tapping his cane. -It also helps me trick Klarion. Each tap changes our general surroundings, allowing us to move without being intercepted by Klarion. I might be old, but I still have a few tricks under my sleeve, and in the tower of fate, I can be of help.-
-So, where's the helmet of whatever?- Wally asked, taking a step forward.
-Ignore him; we all do,- Artemis sighed, elbowing Wally in the side.
-Ow! What was that for?!- Wally yelped, rubbing his side.
-Haha, young love,- Kent smiled, his eyes twinkling mischievously.
-We're not-! I mean, she's not-! Ugh!- Both Wally and Artemis stammered mentally, their faces red.
-As for where's the helmet, well, we are getting close, which means we must decide now who will wear it. Otherwise, our venture will be in vain,- Kent said, his face growing serious as he looked at each one of us.
-I'll do it,- Raven replied, stepping forward.
-While your arcane capabilities are quite possibly the highest I have ever seen in my long, long life, your affinity to the dark arts and chaos itself will only weaken Nabu. I believe it would be best if someone else were to don the helmet,- Kent said, giving Raven a smile.
-I'll do it then,- I offered, stepping forward. Hopefully, my lack of magical abilities would be enough for Nabu to release me.
-Hm, maybe. You do have a certain aura of the arcane around you, but it is not one of affinity, I wonder...- Kent mused before tapping his cane on the ground.
Wait, I have an arcane aura? Since when? At this, I looked at Raven, who looked back at me just as confused.
-Why don't you wear it?- Wally asked, tilting his head.
Kent broke into a coughing/laughing fit before waving him off. -While that would certainly solve our dilemma, I'm too old for that. The helmet taxes one's body, and I'm not as spry as I used to be; if I put it on right now, I would die before I could do something about Klarion. No, it must be one of you, youngsters.-
-So, can I do it?- I asked, looking at Kent.
-Well, to be entirely honest, anyone can. Whether Nabu can use their body to the fullest potential or not is the real question,- Kent replied, looking at each one of us.
-What do you mean?- Superboy asked, his brow furrowed.
-Well, Nabu uses his arcane powers, alongside the arcane powers of his host, to increase his power and efficiency. If one of these two parts doesn't fit in that, well, he comes up short, so to speak,- Kent explained.
-So, you're saying that it's up to whoever has the most compatible arcane abilities with Nabu?- Aqualad asked, his brow furrowed in thought.
-Yes, that would be the most logical conclusion,- Kent replied with a nod, tapping his cane on the ground once again.
-And who is that?- Aqualad asked, looking at each one of us.
-Right now? You,- Kent replied with a sigh. -Which is why I'm not offering you the helmet. When Nabu finds an ideal host, well... He likes to make that host a permanent arrangement.-
-Then I'll do it,- Aqualad said with a nod.
I shook my head. -The hell you will! Didn't you hear him? If he likes the host, that's it; you're gone, forever locked inside the helmet.-
Aqualad's face softened. -I am aware, but... This is important. We need Dr. Fate if we're going to beat Klarion. I don't want to sacrifice myself, but I will if I must.-
Not gonna let that happen.
-Sorry to cut the moment short, but we have arrived,- Kent said as the ground before us opened up, revealing a staircase leading... sideways.
-What's with all these sideway stairs,- Superboy muttered as we all began to follow Kent down the staircase.
-It's an arcane thing,- Kent replied with a wave of his hand. -The less sense it makes, the better.-
-That sounds like a you thing; I do magic, and I like my things to be organized. This place is a headache,- Raven said, her voice laced with annoyance.
-I'm sure it is, my dear,- Kent said with a chuckle as we arrived at the top of the tower.
Wait... what? How the fudge did we end at the top of the tower?
"Now, time to call that old helmet back," Kent said as he began to chant in a language, I didn't understand. Suddenly, the air around us began to distort, and a yellow mist appeared before us, revealing the helmet of Dr. Fate.
"Even Hollywood has better special effects," Kid Flash said, rolling his eyes.
"How can someone so young be so headstrong?" Kent asked, shaking his head.
Before anyone us could reply, a red portal appeared behind the helmet as Klarion's laughter echoed through the tower. "I see you have found the helmet. How unfortunate for you," Klarion said, his voice dripping with amusement as he and his companion Abracadabra stepped through the portal as it closed. "Abracadabra! Make yourself useful!"
Time to meet Nabu, I guess. Taking a deep breath, I stepped forward and reached for the helmet. However, as soon as my fingers brushed the metal, I was blasted back by an invisible force. -What the?-
"I see," Kent muttered.
"Interesting," Klarion said, his voice laced with amusement. "It seems the old fart doesn't want you as his host, after all. Well, that makes things... simpler for me."
"Give me that. Maybe there's a button somewhere..." Wally said, grabbing the helmet and inspecting it closely before Aqualad took it from his hands.
"Goodbye, my friends. It was an honor fighting by your side," Aqualad said, his voice sad as he placed the helmet on his head. The moment the helmet touched Aqualad's skin, his body was engulfed in yellow light, and Dr. Fate was reborn anew.