Young Justice: The Super Soldier

Chapter 28 - Denial part 3

The Team jumps through, but what was originally a downward jump spun so the gateway was now floating in mid-air from their point of view. Until it disappears in a golden flash. Wally turns away from where he was watching it, to find the whole Team looking at him.

"Well?" Artemis asks, a confident look on her face.

"Ever hear of string theory?" he questions sarcastically. "We're in a pocket dimension."

"Ugh," Artemis growls angered by Wally's absolute lack of faith.

"What's that?" M'gann questions. What she's looking at is Kent Nelson's cane floating above the snow.

"Ooo, maybe it's Kent's magic wand," Wally says sarcastically. Speeding over so he grabs it at the same time Artemis does.

"I got it." they synchronize. Then it begins to glow gold. "Huh?" they both question in shock. "I can't let go!" before being pulled upwards by the cane and disappearing in a flash of gold.

The three exchange a worried look while Cap was completely calm.

"Are we there yet?" the teen drawls, his cat lying behind his neck. "Are we there yet? Are we there yet?"

Kadabra grabs Nelson's shoulder, bring all three to a stop. "Tell us how to find the helmet," he demands, clearly becoming aggravated.

Kent glares, but can't say anything due to the collar around his neck. In a second Kadabra removes it, throwing it over his shoulder with a smug look. "Can't," Kent says, though his voice is hoarse he's smiling. "Having too much fun."

Kadabra's face contorts in anger, then electrocutes Kent, knocking him to the ground. "Still having fun?"

The teen chuckles. "I am! Zap 'im again!" another idea comes to his mind as his fist meets his open right hand. "Or dump him off the side, and watch him splat!"

Kadabra raises his 'wand' again. Zapping Kent.

The teen laughs once, enjoying the pain before him. Until his cat meows and grabs his attention. "Ah, yes, yes." he seems to agree with the cat. "I suppose we might still need him." though he looks back at the pain Kadabra is causing Kent with vicious glee.

Superboy, M'gann, Cap and Kaldur walk through the snow in almost silence. Until M'gann finally speaks up. "I don't understand Wally. It's almost like he needs to believe the impossible can't happen."

Kaldur approaches it calmly, having known Wally for a few years means he can understand how he thinks. At least a little bit. "Wally uses his understanding of science to control what he cannot comprehend. Acknowledging magic would relinquish the last vestige of that control."

Turning towards the sound the four find a doorway sitting on top of a nearby ridge with a few steps leading up to it. They exchange no words as they head towards it.

On a nearby platform to where the teen is watching Kadabra torture Kent, Artemis and Wally come into existence. Neither lets go of the cane as they move from lying on their sides to kneeling on one knee. Kent sees them instantly.

Once Wally's looking in the right direction he recognizes Kadabra. "Abra Kadabra," he growls.

Kent relaxes and gains a slight smile. "Well, would you look at that."

The cane glows in Artemis and Wally's grip, in response, Kent's whole body glows the same gold. Kadabra and the teen barely glance at the teen-heroes as Kent begins to float and fly past them. Grabbing the cane with both hands immediately lets Wally and Artemis let go it as Kent's bonds come undone.

"In here," Kent says, standing up and using his cane to create an elevator in the wall. All three rush in.

"No! No! No!" the teen working with Kadabra shouts angrily. "I want that helmet!" he raises his hands, red magic gathering as the door to the elevator begins to shut. "I want it! I want it! I want it!" the red lightning only hitting after the doors are fully shut.

Elevator music plays in the background as the number shown increases. Both teens look to Nelson, unsure who should say something first.

"I'm Kent Nelson. By the way." Kent finally speaks up.

"I'm Artemis," she tells him. "Miss Manners here, is Wally."

Kent smiles. "Well, Artemis, we're up against an opponent that with tremendous mystic power."

"Abra Kadabra?" Wally questions rhetorically then scoff with an eye roll. "Flash proved that he uses futuristic technology to simulate magic." he says directly at Kent. "Guy's all show and no biz."

"Right you are." Kent agrees.

Much to Artemis' shock. As Wally smiles proudly, looking at her shocked expression with a little too much pride. "He is?" she asks, stunned.

"Abra is a charlatan." Kent admits."but Klarion, the Witch Boy, kid with the cat, he's an actual Lord of Chaos, the ultimate enemy of a Lord of Order like Doctor Fate."

"Right." Wally drawls. "You're a Lord of Order." though he sounds hesitant and confused.

"Oh, no. Not me." Kent says with a smile. "I'm just an old coot Fate used to put on. Until my wife Inza convinced me there was more to life." he opens his watch and looks down at her picture. "Ah, she was a real pistol, that Inza." then snapping it shut and getting back on track. "Anywho, Klarion's after the helmet. If he gets his sticky little mitts on it, he'll turn the planet into his own personal playground of pandemonium."

The elevator dings, and the doors open. The three walk out, seeing a giant golden tower-bell hanging on the platform before them. Following Kent, Artemis and Wally ascend the stairs.

As Artemis runs to the four of them, Kent turns to Wally. "Friends of yours?"

Electricity zaps in the background. A blue bolt just missing the two of them. On a perpendicular platform are Klarion and Kadabra.

"Friends of yours?!" Wally asks back with equally as much sarcasm as Kent, before grabbing him and getting him out of the way of Kadabra's next shot. Cap, Artemis, Kaldur, Superboy, and M'gann are all forced to dodge it as well.

Kent and Wally crouch near the bell, until Kent stands, raising his cane, and hitting the bell.

As the bell tolls, it gains both Klarion and Kadabra's attention. Keeping Teekl in his arms Klarion takes off into the air, as Kent and Wally walk into the bell. Klarion following them in without any hesitation.

Meanwhile, Cap who rolled out of the way pressed another button on the side of his watch "For a wizard doesn't he look kinda ridiculous?" He quipped as his watch made energy construct similar to his signature star shield.

"His "magic" is nothing but technology," Aqualad said by telepathy as he jumped out of the way from an electrical blast "He's just a fake".

An angered Superboy tries to get close to Kadabra only to get blasted away again. Meanwhile, Artemis tries to sneak up behind him. but as she was about to fire her crossbow she got caught in an electrical field sending her flying into the ground.

"M'gann, can you control his mind?" Cap asked as he blocked another electric blast with his energy shield.

"Well looks like I gotta do this old school," Cap said as he charged through the blasts taking them head-on, blocking everything.

Meanwhile, Kid and a dying Kent are in a gold bubble while Klarion is assaulting it with as much magic as he can.

"28. 29. 30." Wally counts the c.h.e.s.t compressions. "Come on. Come on," he begs Kent.

Klarion begins firing shots with each hand, throwing them almost like baseballs, which is enough to take Wally's attention away from Kent. "I want that helmet and I want it now!" he growls.

Through the bubble, Wally can hear him, looking up to the helmet, then down to Kent. "Wally, we're in trouble." M'gann's voice cuts through telepathically

Within the tower, Kaldur, Superboy, Artemis are trapped in electrical cages. While Miss Martian keeps one hand out to deflect shots telekinetically, and Cap dodging and blocking the electric shots. "Tell Kent we need Doctor Fate." she continues.

Wally watches from M'gann's perspective as Cap's energy shield breaks and was sent flying. Unable to do anything as one heads right for M'gann.

The jolt snaps the connection between Wally and M'gann. Bringing his mind back to the rooftop with a gasp.

Gritting his teeth Klarion pauses, then forms a magic circle around his feet. Gathering power between his hands until they expand to create two red hands that instantly shoot out and manage to get a grip on the shield surrounding the helmet, Wally, and Kent.

The claws screech against the shield, ignoring it Wally looks down at Kent. "A test of faith." he agrees.

Standing he takes the helmet in his hands. Though, Klarion grabs his attention before he can put it on. "Hey, dumb kid. You put that on, you may never get it off!" he warns as he rips the shield apart.

Wally raises the helmet, as Klarion gathers more magic, shooting it at Wally. However, he puts the helmet on before it can hit him. Though the magic does absorb him.

Meanwhile, a downed Cap looks up to see a struggling M'gann fighting Kadabra gritting his teeth he gets back up and runs back into the fight but as he runs Cap notices the watch was fried.

Seeing the broken watch Cap just shrugged and continued charging forward. By the time a distracted Kadabra had realized that Cap was up again it was too late as he was now locked into hand-to-hand combat.

Locked in hand-to-hand combat Kadabra had no chance as he tried multiple to times to gain distance but Cap continued attacking. Cap had noticed Kadabra's one weakness...the wand he was using to keep the team captive.

Within a second Cap grabbed the wand that was imprisoning his friends and snapped it in half breaking the electrical fields. Seeing his friends free and no longer in pain Cap tossed Kadabra over his shoulder onto the ground before punching him finally knocking him out.

"We need to help Wally" M'gann called out. The team then raced towards the spot where the bell once hanged only to see it was no longer there.

"It was just here," Artemis said confused.

"What do we do now? It would take to long to find another way out" Superboy said.

"We should wait..." Cap spoke up "If Kent put on the Helmet it shouldn't take long."

"That's an "if" Captain if he did put on we still need to help." Aqualad declared.

"We would only get in the way instead of helping them," Cap warned which caused Aqualad to show a frown of annoyance but didn't argue.

Meanwhile, Klarion launches a red magic dragon at Fate's downed form, forcing the magician to jump out of the way. As it comes back around he puts up a shield. Only to get hit in the back by Klarion. Knocking him to the other side of the roof.

As Fate gets his hands under him Klarion changes the flames in his hands to red dots that hang in the air. Before he uses finger guns to have them start shooting at Doctor Fate.

The Lord of Order barely has time to get a shield up. Though each shot cracks the shield. Until it shatters, knocking Fate even further back. Though he rolls to his feet to dodge more red fire. Taking off into the air to continue to avoid the red fire Klarion is spewing.

Grinning devilishly, Klarion raises a hand, creating red columns that Fate dodges. Until right before Klarion he gets hit by one. Knocking him to the ground where the helmet hits with a clang.

"You're out of practice, Nabu, and that pathetic host body," his fingernails shink against each other as if they were made of metal. "zero affinity for the mystic arts." Klarion raises his hands, thunderclaps in the sky, as a full storm brews over the tower. Red lightning raining down.

Just in time Fate gets a barrier up, though the energy that comes off is rainbow rather than gold or red.

"Ooo, rainbow power." Klarion taunts.

Teekl meows.

"I am paying attention, you stupid cat." he snaps back.

Teekl mews again, her hackles rising as her body arches.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm winning," Klarion emphasizes.

Fate's eyes narrow, a golden light booms from his c.h.e.s.t, knocking him free and creating a yellow flame on the roof. "It is difficult for a Lord of Order or Chaos to maintain a presence on the physical plane." as the smoke clears Fate stands tall, in the centre of the ring of yellow fire, cape billowing behind him.

Angered to be compared to a Lord of Order, Klarion's whole form changes, dropping any resemblance to a normal human. As he erupts in a red fire that covers him and Teekl, before launching fire at Fate with a screech.

"I am bound to the helmet and use a human host." Fate continues, dodging all of Klarion's attacks. Seeing a pause he unleashes his own, which Klarion barely blocks with stone from the tower. "But that is not your way."

Klarion drops the shield, his face contorted to look even more animalistic, and his eyes glowing red. "You're babbling, Nabu." his hands gathering red flames again.

"Am I?" Fate questions, drawing his hands to his c.h.e.s.t. Where a yellow beam shoots out.

Klarion raises a shield quickly, looking away because he knows it's not strong enough. However, the beam misses him entirely. Teekl's hackles rise as she hisses, and yelps at the impact that sends her flying.

"Teekl!" Klarion shouts, rising to his feet and turning to Fate. "I can't believe you assault a defenceless p.u.s.s.ycat."

"We both know that creature is no cat, Witch Boy," Wally's green eyes narrow in accusation. "And without your familiar," the yellow flames that surrounded Teekl fade out as she warily stands to her feet. The yellow flame now gathered in Fate's hands. "you have no anchor in this reality." proving it, Klarion fades from sight in staggering increments.

"Bully! Killjoy! Geezer!" Fate raises his hands, shooting another beam, this time at Klarion. "Holy carp!" the Witch Boy yelps before jumping into a red/black portal. Another forming above Teekl, where he drops out and picks her up in his arms. "We're out of here!" both of them fully dissolving into black and red outlined wisps that take off toward the sky.

Leaving Fate standing taller on top of the tower.

"Yes! That's how we kick it on the earthly plane!" Wally cheers, still within the helmet. Then glances at Kent. "Uhh, it-it's over, right? Why isn't Nabu taking off the Helmet?"

"Because the Earth needs Doctor Fate," Nabu speaks up, an image of the helmet appearing behind Wally and Kent. "I will not release this body."

"He can't do that!" Wally objects. Then looks to Kent. "Can he do that?"

"Can, but shouldn't," Kent says angrily. "This is not the right candidate. The kid's soul belongs to the world of science, not sorcery."

"True." Nabu agrees, but his tone is dark. "But I do not appreciate being permanently hidden away, useless, and isolated for decades at a time." no one can say anything. "Chaos must not be allowed to reign." he snaps.

"That won't happen again, the boy'll take the helmet and make sure you're put to good use," Kent speaks for Wally.

"Yeah. I swear." Wally agrees, smiling brightly.

"And in the meantime, I'll stick around, keep you company," Kent says, a touch of sadness in his voice.

Wally turns to Kent instantly, horrified. "Wait. What happened to you ascending? Seeing Inza?" his voice saddening as he asks each question.

"So you believe now, eh?" Kent taunts. "Don't sweat it, Kid. I'll spend a few millennia here, then see Inza." he flips open his watch to look down at her picture once more. His own voice going said. "That's the great thing about eternity. It's eternal."

"The bargain is acceptable," Nabu says darkly.

"Some free advice before you go. Find your own little Spitfire," Kent begins to fade away. "one who won't let you get away with nothin', for example, that-" and is cut off before he can hear the end of it. As the helmet finally comes off.

Looking around Wally finds himself still on the roof, walking over to Kent he sets the helmet down and places the watch back in his hand. Closing his fingers around it. Then looking down at the man he couldn't save. Blaming himself.

Mount Justice; August 20th, 3:04 EDT

Wally walks up to a shelf, where all his souvenirs are proudly displayed. Setting the helmet beside Cheshire's mask. Wally stands proudly before it.

Artemis clears her throat. "You never said what happened to you when you put on the helmet."

Wally's face falls, looking downright bored and uncaring. "Energy from the thing rewrote my brain's Beta Waves. I was Bio-scripted into becoming Doctor Fate for a few minutes." he shrugs. "No big."

"Wait, you're still claiming there's no such thing as magic?" Artemis asks, shocked. Then scoffs. "If that's how you feel, why keep it at all?"

Wally looks to it, then to her, giving a half-smile. "Souvenir."

"Geek!" she insults, storming out of the room.

"Find your own little spitfire, one who won't let you get away with nothin'." Kent's voice echoes inside Wally's head. The redhead frowns at the words, but as he sees M'gann walk by he smiles widely.

"Hello, Megan. Guess who bought us two tickets to a magic show," he says following her down the hall.

The Loft; August 20th, 23:01 EDT

"Jarvis I'm Home" Cap called out as he enters the door of his Loft.

"Welcome back Sir" Jarvis the A.I replied "Sir you have a visitor who is waiting for you"

Putting away his gear Cap proceeds to walk into the living room "Oh yeah? Who come visit me at this Time-" as Steve turns around he sees a shadowy figure at his Kitchen counter.

"Hello, Steve," The woman in the shadows said. Cap's eyes widen in surprise as he recognised the voice.

"Nyssa..." Cap mumbled as Nyssa slowly came out of the shadows.

Cap had noticed something was wrong as she was walking weakly. Upon walking out of the shadows Nyssa had multiple cuts across her clothes and blood on her face "The Shadows are coming."

As Nyssa was about to fall to her knees Cap ran over and held onto her before she before fainting "Jarvis activate Sanctuary 03." Cap called out as he carried Nyssa across the other side of the room.

"Right away Sir." Jarvis said as Cap placed his hand on a wall which then began to open up into an elevator "Don't worry Nyssa I got you" he mumbled as he entered the elevator.

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