Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Fawcett City has always been one, if not the strangest city the League's ever come across, for starters, the city existed at random intervals, sometimes it was there, sometimes it wasn't. As in not even satellites could pick it up.  

There was also how its time seemed to switch between the 80's and modern time. Or how its currency seemed to vary between money, gold, minerals and strange coins, drachmas . And there were several different types of drachmas too.

There were its people too, not all were humans. Nothing about the city was normal, but the people… its residents in general took the cherry on top.  

Unicorns could be found grassing at the park, huge and much more terrifying than their movie counterparts. Centaurs, elves, fae, gargoyles, mermaids, kelpies, pegasus, dwarves, it was like some sort of fairy tale book had exploded in the city. And the humans coexisted just fine with the mystical, didn't bat a single eye at it. 

Outsiders were regarded with disdain, for most outsiders came to bother those who weren't human. Many pamphlets were given to tourists, how currency worked, what creatures to not approach, how to not get tricked by faes or into deals by other creatures.

Magic users did seem to avoid the place like the plague though. Zatanna had once said that that place was like a bottomless well of magic, where all leylines connected, by extension the very highly likely place of connection to the Rock Of Eternity . Source of all magic , prison to horrors beyond comprehension…

It was what made the place so active with all kinds of magical things. 

A place that had a hero who didn't even do magic. And still, somehow, Captain Marvel seemed to do an amazing job at keeping all that mess in check, be it magic related or not. The League had seen a dragon who had been destroying everything in Metropolis become just one big puppy the second Marvel came into the picture.

Point was, he might not be magic, but he did amazing if not better than most magic users when dealing with magic creatures. All he had to do was show up and the creatures would just stop. At least 90% of them did.

So when a bunch of these creatures appeared out of nowhere and became downright violent, even those who were meant to be docile, the League had tried calling for Marvel.

Just that he never answered.

Leading to the League having to deal with the creatures themselves, which was a bit hard when many of said creatures glitched, appearing and disappearing. 

But rather than senseless violence, it seemed more like how animals reacted when danger was in the air. Spooked, acting out of instinctual fear, not knowing what was wrong, just that something was wrong.

That wasn't all that was just acting up, magic was also acting up, reason the creatures were all over the place, veils had become unstable, magic itself had become unstable, Fawcett City seemed to be the most affected by it all, its time had blended together, between the 80's and the modern time, anything that stepped into the city was also affected by it, electronic devices exploding into flames, clothes morphing into an explosion of a bad mix between modern clothes and the 80's fashion.

And because modern time and the 80's had blended, lots of things had stopped working too, like cars and electronic devices, making the entire place succumb to chaos, hospitals weren't working, computers, it was all back to basics.

The worst was that Captain Marvel was nowhere to be found. It was as if the man had completely disappeared. Granted, he did have the habit to disappear at random intervals for equally random amount of times, but he would never do so without informing the League beforehand.

So all the League could do was attempt and fail at keeping things calm, but it wasn't just Fawcett City, the entire world seemed to have gone mad, and to make matters even worse, several doors to hell had opened in different countries, flooding the streets with all kinds of demons. More chaos than anyone could deal with. Especially because only magic users could deal with demons.

But magic users weren't having the greatest of times with their magic.

To that add the thunderstorms, random earthquakes and how feral the ocean was, to a point where not even Aquaman or Mera could keep it under control.

That is, until a wild epiphany hit Constantine. 

The Champion Of Magic. 

~

Thavma's been alive for far longer than half of the multiverse, he's seen entire worlds be created, collapse, change, evolve…

But being the Champion Of Magic came with more responsibilities and struggles than people might ever imagine, while he spent most of his time fulfilling his function, as a protector and guardian of all that was magical, he also had his job as Captain Marvel.

A choice he made over fifty years ago in order to explore how it felt like to be human, to have friends, to interact much more closely with the worlds he protected.

But it was that job as Captain Marvel what had made him grow naive, forget that not all in the world was about being a hero, that being willing to help all of those who needed him wasn't something someone like him should take without hesitation. That as the Champion he should always be careful. That to trust someone blindly, could mean his end.

Lex Luthor had taught him that. And so had Teth Adam, Kodak and Liserole. Each one of them from different worlds, but very much alike on having the desire of exploiting his power.

But he was stupid. He forgot. He became too soft.

And once again, he paid the price.

Hiding his magic this time around hadn't been enough to keep away those who aimed to hunt him, he had still been found. All because he was an idiot.

He might possess and unfathomable and vast amount of magic, he might be able to bend the laws of magic and all that shit altogether, but that's never meant he is exempt from the rules of the universe, to keep balance, some rules must be made, rules he cannot ignore or change, even Gods followed rules. 

He had once been told it was to keep balance, to prevent chaos. 

Meant he was bound to these rules. In order to keep balance, he was, much like all magic creatures, able to be summoned and bound. The ritual was near impossible to complete, it required blood from a god, a feather from an angel and the heart of a magic user.

Those first two were near impossible to come across, gods were sneakier than people gave them credit for and extremely hard to injure let alone kill.

And angels rarely left Heaven, and if they did, they hid among humans or in the ethereal plane, they could never be found if they didn't want to be found, for they lived in a whole different plane than everyone else , a whole different veil from the one he created to hide the mystical. A plane even he had trouble locating.

Point was, it should be impossible to summon him, that also adding the fact that he's never been a fan of letting the books that withheld his summoning ritual just be found so easily, the summoning ritual was even written in a long lost language.

And it also needed his name.

He's done the impossible to hide from people the means to summon him and bind him. He's hidden his magic, his name, the grimoires with his summoning ritual, everything.

But none of it worked.

In all his life, he's been summoned three times, and those three times had led to things he would rather forget, Black Adam, the Grand Canyon, and the Bermuda Triangle. When people summoned him, it was to either attempt to steal his powers, demand things he could not give, or command him to do unforgiving acts.

Humans could be vile, letting their thirst for revenge control them, their desire to win over others, greed, envy, pride, the sins of mankind could make it all truly grotesque. 

But all those things had happened because he had trusted the wrong people, Black Adam happened because he trusted the wrong person at the wrong time, the man had been filled with far too much grief to care for what Thavma said. He lost a friend that day, but he also lost the first thing to a family he ever had.

The Grand Canyon happened because he gave his loyalty to the wrong person, a man who only cared for himself and wouldn't care sacrificing his own people to win a war where everyone ended up dead anyways.

And the Bermuda Triangle happened also because he trusted the wrong person with things they shouldn't have known, and that brought him a woman blinded by jealousy and fury, forcing him to end an entire civilization.

This time around, he had kept people at arm-lengths, hadn't given his name, hadn't given anything about himself to them, nothing at all. Had even plastered on a human name he hasn't used in ages to avoid people knowing his name at all. His name was nowhere to be found.

So how was he summoned?

He had been in another world, just watching the thunderstorm as the accelerator of particles exploded, he might not be a fan of speedsters, but it's never made it any less fascinating to watch them be born. See as the speed force was lit ablaze as its true anchor was finally born. Watch the world become slow mo for a fleeting second as the lightning hits its target… it was amazing.

Even more so because the birth of a speedster meant thousands of possibilities, thousands of new universes as they began traveling through the multiverse. Thousands of new lives, new heroes, new events. It was a stunning view.

He had been so focused on that that he hadn't noticed someone had been trying to summon him until it was too late, he had no chances to fight, to even prepare. All he had felt had been the brutal tug on his magic, all as his body was yanked through the multiverse. Unforgivable and uncaring.

Then he had slammed into the ground, and that had been quite a while ago. And so far? He's been unable to so much as sit up, his body felt incredibly heavy, weak, making it near impossible to even move. His magic was nowhere to be felt, he felt sick, vision blurred, and the place was dark.

All he could see was a wall, and if his terrible vision didn't fail him, candles were all the source of light this… room had. He wasn't sure what had happened, if someone had been here at all. He had passed out for God knows how long once he had landed here.

But he did know something, whoever had summoned him had done something to the spell. None of his previous summonings had ever left him feeling this drained, this… weak. Also, he wasn't on the ground, he laid on some sort of platform that reminded him of the floor in bird cages. 

His wrists and ankles were tied, shackled? He didn't know, but the pressure was familiar to being handcuffed, he would know, many cops, guards and soldiers have arrested him throughout his life.

The sudden sound of a door opening somewhere caught his attention, metal groaning as a door opened and closed. Footsteps climbing down the stairs, echoing across the room. He tried and failed to lift his head, turn it, anything.

But he couldn't move. He didn't have to though, a man he didn't recognize came to stand before him, at a safe distance that was, and thanks to the platform he laid at, he was able to see that the man stood outside the summoning circle.

For a moment, all the man did was stare at him, as if he were nothing but some zoo attraction to stare upon.

"I have to admit, that when I envisioned calling upon the Champion, I did not expect this one to be… well, you ." The man spoke, he didn't seem pleased, like, at all. 

As if it was somehow his fault that the man had summoned him and he turned up. 

"You know, for someone who's sole survival dictates how the world runs, it's a bit reckless to play hero. I have had you for two days now, and it's as if your absence alone is enough to drive every mystical being mad."

The man's words made Billy's blood run cold. What? Two days? He's been cut off from the world for two days? How had that happened? Why was he waking up now?

God, this was all wrong, this shouldn't be happening, all of those who have summoned him before had never cut him off from the world, this… this man had no idea the damage he was doing to this and every single world out there. 

The Champion couldn't be cut off, without him to act as the connection between the Rock Of Eternity and the world's magic, all magic in the world would become unstable, veils, planes, it would all become unstable, all as leylines began drying up. And many worlds who lost their connection to magic never made it out unscathed. 

It was a brutal process that changed how the fabric of reality itself worked, how many creatures, laws of the universe and gods worked.

Without magic, chaos and death came. He's seen entire worlds be consumed by wars, because people couldn't handle living in the same world as the mystical or anything that wasn't human at all. Other worlds collapsed, unable to handle the process. 

And the multiverse… no… nexus events needed to be fixed, God, he just hoped the sorcerer supremes would be able to deal with those, he did create them for that exact purpose, to deal with nexus events from their own worlds when he couldn't. To deal with any interdimensional threat when he couldn't. 

But not all worlds had a sorcerer supreme. And Hecate couldn't help, goddess of magic or not, he was made to deal with things Gods couldn't handle, he had evolved into something that surpassed what Gods could do, there were things only the Champion could do. 

And now the Champion was absent. He just hoped no world collapsed in his absence. That the sorcerer supremes would keep it safe, if worse came to worse at least he had a sliver of hope that the Endless, the Watcher, Loki, The Presence and the others would be able to handle it. 

The Endless were far more powerful than he was, The Presence was even more powerful, the Watcher always managed to find the right help and Loki was holding the multiverse, he wasn't strictly the only one watching over the multiverse nor strictly the only one who's wellbeing affected how reality worked. There were many beings whose existence was webbed so intricately with existence that if they were killed, mortally wounded or captured, the world would know.

Only that he was one of the few who actually affected not one world, but all.

Because he was meant to be one of the main anchors. And now shit was so gonna get bad for everyone, probably was already. Man, he was so not looking forward to fixing it all and having to hear everyone bitching about it.

"It's funny, how useless the Justice League truly is with you out of the picture. And the funniest part is that they don't even know it's you who they should be looking for." The man's voice catches his attention, Thavma wants to punch that stupid smile off his face.

"Fuck… off…" He manages to drag out, his voice comes out rasped, weak, pathetic. God, why is he so damn weak? And how is it that he is waking up now? And he still feels sick, so sick, all he wants is to curl into himself and just pass out if it means he doesn't have to feel this anymore.

But he won't. He won't pass out, he won't allow himself to close his eyes, this guy isn't as stupid as he seems. He is planning something, he did something.

But what? What did he even want? People summoned him for a purpose, what was this man's purpose? At least he was still in his Champion form. Good. Small mercies, the last thing he needs is some random villain knowing he is a kid. Granted, a kid older than a lot of Gods themselves.

But a kid.

That form is the only thing keeping him sane. The only time he gets to be normal and be allowed some peace.  

He glowers as the man chuckles at his insult.

"I'm afraid I can't do. You see, I summoned the Champion for one purpose, and one purpose only. And since I already made sure you had no GPS on you or whatever else all you goody two shoes use to communicate with each other. You are to stay here until I say so."

The man's words were accompanied with him stepping into the circle. But Billy couldn't move no matter how hard he tried to.

"Don't bother trying to move. I'm not stupid, I prepared everything for your arrival. There's more eternium than you could ever possibly imagine behind these walls, under the floor, and the room above you. I also added an extra spell on the binding circle, you will be unable to move unless I say otherwise."

The man's voice echoed across the place, his words making Thavma's stomach twist, eternium? Well, that at least explained how come he couldn't hear the Gods. Or why he felt so incredibly drained.

His throat closed when the man came stand far too close, and he couldn't move, not even his damn fingers would twitch. And he couldn't move! His breathing quickened up against his will. Because this is the Bermuda Triangle all over again, where all he can do is be frozen like a statue unless the summoner says otherwise. Where all he can do is watch, petrified, as everything around him turns to shit. 

The sudden hand on his shoulder makes fire blaze in his chest. The most all consuming urge to call on lightning almost driving him insane, even more so upon noticing the condescending and mocking look he is getting.

"There's no need to be afraid, I won't hurt you."

Much. Was a term that hung in the air like a thick blanket.

"Who's… afraid? Dickhead." He was never one to curse in his Captain Marvel form, but right now, he feels like he is entitled to do it when this asshole has him like this. He hates this. Feeling so… vulnerable. Had this been how Oneiros had felt when the humans captured him? He had to give it to him, the guy was much more stubborn and proud than Billy ever gave him credit for if he chose to stay quiet for decades.

But he also feels anger, anger at being patronized, at knowing that the League must be having a hard time dealing with the mess his absence must be causing, at having hidden from them who he was, because if this asshole's words were something to go by, they were looking for the Champion.

He should have trusted them, but trusting humans wholeheartedly has never led anywhere good. Just once.

And that was centuries ago. As in ancient greece ago.

And alright, not all in the League were humans, and he did visit Diana a few times when she was a kid in Themyschira, though she has no idea it's him since he always turned up with his Billy appearance and clothes nowhere near similar to his Captain Marvel suit. He always felt bad for letting her think he left without a goodbye when she was 15.

But it had been time for him to stop interacting with her, she needed to follow the path that would lead her to leave Themyschira. He couldn't be there for that.

Point was, trusting humans has never been a good idea, even less trusting them with who he was. Greed was an ugly sin many humans carried with them. Granted, the League has never given him reason to doubt them, but Batman has shown him that he was safer not telling them who he was. God only knows what that guy's paranoia could do if Billy fed it by letting him know he was virtually indestructible with infinite power over existence itself.

Also.

He hadn't wanted things to change between them, especially with the magic users. Look at the good that gave him. Trapped, bound and completely at the mercy of this dickhead.

And he really, really wanted to punch this guy. This guy who leaned over and grabbed something from behind him. And it was then that he noticed the soft scratch of another set of footsteps behind him. How many other people were there in the room with him? How did he not notice it before? Fuck. He hated eternium, where did this guy even find that much eternium? He was sure he had collected all the eternium in this world.

So how did he get it?

He felt confusion wash over him alongside something he refused to acknowledge as fear. As the man brought to view some sort of clear tube that reminded him a whole lot of those IV tubes people used at the hospitals , a needle attached to it.

"I heard a most interesting rumor about the Champion, it was the reason I wanted to summon him." Thavma couldn't help but scoff at that.

"A rumor? Jackass." He mocked, what kind of idiot messed with magic based off of 'rumors'? Idiots. That's who.

But the man didn't react to his jab.

"Your blood is said to be able to grow flowers with healing properties."

It was all of Thavma's amazing acting skills that kept him from reacting. Who the hell even knew that? He hasn't bled in centuries . How the hell did someone even start such a rumor? An immortal perhaps? But it didn't make any sense, he has never let anyone know or see what his blood could do.

So how?

"That's… ridiculous."

"Don't bother lying. I took the liberty of testing it out while you were unconscious, many flowers do many different things, but as far as I know, it's true." 

Greed.

Ah. That's what was swimming in the man's gaze, asphyxiating and all consuming greed.

"What a hero you turned out to be. Say, how can you call yourself a hero, when it's okay with you to just let many die at the hospitals? Children? People you could easily save with just a little drop of blood. Isn't the job of a hero to save as many as they can?” He sounded disgusted and judgemental, but there was an odd raw rage beneath it all.

And still.

Billy didn't answer, anger curling around his stomach, those words no longer worked with him. As Mary had very eloquently said once, he owed nothing to no one, just because he could heal people with his blood it didn't mean he had to bleed for the world. It wasn't his obligation, nor something to feel guilty for either.

He wasn't anyone's blood bank. He wasn't put in this world to just give every piece of his away.

His blood was his. And if he chose to not give it to people, then so be it.

"I don't have… to explain myself to anyone, even less… you ." He dragged out, each word felt heavier than the last one. Even keeping his eyes open was a monumental struggle. 

"Fair enough. But I could care less, as I see it. You will bring me a fortune." The man spoke, and without a single warning, he shoved the needle straight into his bicep, Billy bit back a wince, feeling the uncomfortable pressure, and he didn't need to be a genius to know his blood was being drawn.

His blood was being drawn. It made a new kind of anger set deep within. Did he expect to sell his blood for profit? That… it made him grit his teeth, how dare he? To use someone else's suffering to make money out of it… How despicable could someone be to do such a thing? 

How dare he use him for something so vile? The Champion was a guardian, a protector, nothing he did was for profit. Healing for profit wasn't something he would ever do. It made him sick, the idea of this asshole taking advantage of those who suffered, using his blood to gain profit. Stealing his blood, selling it. It made fire rush through his veins. Such burning rage.

And impotence.

Because he couldn't move. And damned be the day he thought smart to not tell the League anything about him. At least this asshole didn't know the full extent of what his blood could do. Only the very harmless part. Small mercies.

He just hoped Constantine was, despite the situation, still keeping his ears open to whatever weird rumors might be running through the magic community. With a little bit of hope the man would hear about the suspicious healing blood and whatever else and chose to investigate. 

How pathetic though, to have to hope to be saved. He couldn't wait to tear this bastard apart once he was out, Captain Marvel might be all forgiving and positive and all that cheerful attitude.

But the Champion Of Magic wasn't as friendly, nor forgiving. He would teach this guy what it meant to get on his bad side. He would make him scream and wish for something sweeter than death. And even if he begged for it.

He wouldn't grant it to him.

No one had a right to bind him and use him as if he were nothing but a mindless tool, a weapon, to bend to their will and take everything they desired off of him, he was no one's puppet. And most important.

No one stole from him.

~

"You said before that the Champion hasn't been seen in centuries. How come someone knows his name let alone how to bind him? Isn't it a bit dangerous for people to be able to summon and control someone with that kind of power?" Superman asked, the League sat at the meeting room, chaos was still wrecking on Earth, but at least most people had been taken to safety already.

Now all that there was to deal with were the magic beasts, demons, ghosts, and the weather which also just added itself to the shit cake.

Oh.

And Captain Marvel was still nowhere to be found.

"Finding grimoires on how to summon him is near impossible. I didn't even know they existed, he's been known to burn them and take away the magic of anyone who so much as claims to know anything about him." Constantine told as a statement of fact, leaning back against his chair.

Because it was true, the Champion might have not been seen in centuries, but there were enough rumors about people having seen him that spoke of him still being highly active, and someone to not get on the bad side of. 

Because as he just stated, he was known to take the magic of those who claimed to know anything about him, magic, name, where he was, if he knew anyone. 

"Have you truly never met him? Isn't he meant to be… I don't know, like a king of some sorts? Shouldn't you at the very least know what he looks like?" Aquaman questions, he finds it a bit stupid, that a man like that would have such rules, such power, and somehow, no one knew what he looked like. It didn't make any sense.

"He is no regular king. He doesn't hide as a form to maintain suspense or because of pride or arrogance. The Champion has never been one to spend time around others, he is powerful, but it's that power that makes him a target." Zatanna said, feeling like she should elaborate on something. The Champion wasn't a regular king that just about anyone got to see or interact with.

Not because he was above the rest, but because he was not safe even around those he protected. Something Zatanna's always found a bit messed up.

"Lots of people and all sorts of demons and creatures are constantly waiting for him to let his guard down, always hunting him, hoping to either devour him or steal his powers." Dr. Fate added, the Champion was a being of unfathomable power.

Yes.

But that's never stopped others from attacking him or wanting to get their hands on his power. Which stupid, only reckless and stupid people would aim to take on the Champion and steal his powers. He might be all powerful, but he was tied to responsibilities not meant to be carried out by the weak of heart. Probably things no one but the Champion himself could possibly do.

To be the Champion, it was to be responsible for endless lives and worlds. And Nabu couldn't even begin to imagine what that power would be used for if the wrong people took it.

"His powers can be stolen?" Batman asks, he did not see that coming. It was bad enough to find out about the existence of a being as old as time with a power capable of affecting how the world itself worked. Now turns out his power could be stolen?

And where the hell was Captain Marvel? Did the world around him not make him realize that he should be here? Bruce's already left him over a hundred messages.

"In a sense. He can share his powers with others if he so wishes to, but I don't think it's possible for his powers to be taken by force, the kind of magic you would need for that… it would have to be immense." Hawkwoman spoke, in Thanagar, she had heard a lot of stories about the Champion, Living Lightning. 

It was said he had the power to wipe out entire universes with a single flick of the wrist, the same as he could change an entire world without people ever knowing something had changed at all. He was also the one who created the veils that exiled many interdimensional threats. Without him, the world would go out of balance, reality would crumble, as one of its main anchors was removed. 

The proof of it all was on how it's been almost a week since this whole mess began, and things were already reaching a critical point, many people would struggle to get back on their feet once this was over, for the coastal homes had been completely destroyed by the sea levels having risen exponentially.

More and more mystical creatures kept popping up, many demons who did nothing but wreck havoc, and Raven's already began showing signs of struggle with Trigon. It was a matter of time before it all went to shit. If Trigon broke out… or worse.

If the monsters at the Rock broke out due lack of a guardian… Shayera didn't even want to imagine the apocalyptic explosion that would cause.

“Someone has summoned and bound him, that much is clear after our failed attempts to call him. And since we are still alive and no sightings of unusual destruction have been seen. Whoever has him has opted to keep him prisoner for some other reason.” Wonder Woman exclaimed, remembering their early failed attempts to summon the Champion.

She had gotten the spell from her father, he had given her the ingredients and everything, had looked for some weird reason extremely agitated. But she hadn't been told much. And the Champion hadn't appeared.

"Why would keeping him prisoner be any good? What could they possibly get out of that? Where has it ever been said that he gives people anything and everything? Last I heard, he is extremely stubborn and gives nothing to people no matter how much they beg. Being bound doesn't exactly make him be completely compliant to the summoner."

Constantine felt the need to say, who would even be stupid enough to keep the Champion prisoner? The world would collapse if he wasn't released, if he stayed disconnected from the Rock for too long the damage would be irreparable. Even now it was heavy in the air. How volatile and unstable magic was becoming. 

“Maybe they want something from him that doesn't fit the norm? Wouldn't it be easier to find him if we were to track magic users? I mean, didn't you say before magic users can see other magic users?” Flash said, because if they could look into magic users... Maybe they would be able to find this big boss magic guy. Man, he really wished Cap was here, he was always amazing at tracking people down.

“That’s impossible. We wouldn't even know where to look, there's dozens of magic users in the world, he could be anywhere.” Zatanna interjected, because it was true, there were over a thousand magic users, spread all over the globe. 

And that if one didn't add those who hid or were from completely unknown tribes, civilizations and whatnot. It would be like seeking for a needle in a haystack.

“Someone must know something. If someone was able to summon him and bind him, there's definitely people who will know it. Aren't the ingredients needed for that spell really rare and difficult to find? If we find who's come into contact with those ingredients recently, we might be able to find whoever has him.”  Batman stated, he knew, that magic users had lots of contacts, shops and whatnot to get ingredients for spells, grimoires, trinkets and whatnot.

If this person summoned someone so powerful, he must have also purchased something extra, something to keep such a powerful being in the circle. Bruce has lived long enough to know not all binding circles worked, sometimes, the creatures broke out or managed to burn the spell and escape.

If this… Champion hasn't done so it means he can't do so. Bruce's seen low level demons escape binding circles with little effort, he finds it hard to believe that a low level demon would have better skills to escape a summoning circle than the very being who wielded enough magical power to put supernovas to shame.

Also meant whoever caught him was no little matter. To be able to subdue such a being… 

He dragged a hand down his face, he's never wished for Captain Marvel's presence as much as he did now, with all of this being magic related it was clear Superman wouldn't be a great asset if a fight broke out. Captain Marvel was one of their heaviest hitters, and immune to magic. 

But the man was yet to answer his comm, and Bruce was so gonna tear him a new one and remind him that he seriously can't just disappear whenever he pleases. He wasn't alone anymore, they were a team, they should at the very most warn each other if they were going to disappear for whatever reason. As Hal did when he had to leave for Oa, or Diana when she left to visit Themyscira, or Arthur when he needed to leave for an unknown amount of time due Atlantis' businesses.

“I might know someone who sells angel feathers.” Constantine's words were unsurprising, Batman nodded. They really needed to fix this before things got more complicated.

~

Alright.

Having blood drawn wasn't as bad as Billy first thought, even if it made him feel impossibly exhausted and half of the time far too loopy to even remember where he was, what year and world it was or who he was, but somehow, the man had brought someone else, a woman whose voice was somewhat familiar, but he couldn't be sure. 

She has been coming here a few times by now, he couldn't tell how long he has been here, there were no windows, no clocks, nothing at all to tell him anything which honestly did nothing but add to the slowly driving him insane situation.

But the woman has been coming a lot. At first, all she did was check on him, her methods told him she might be some kind of doctor or something of the likes. Or a scientist, he decided to lean on the latter when she cut some of his hair, and also asked the man for some of his blood, it had been fine and partially unconcerning.

It hadn't been the first time he had been treated as a lab rat to be studied.

But then things took a turn, the woman honest to God requested to have a sample of his skin. As in, she seemed to aim to mutilate him. He has been mutilated before, but that had been in battles and he hadn't even noticed until the adrenaline wore off.

And he had all his powers. Never like this, powerless, fairly human, completely weak and vulnerable. It made his heart race, but regardless of how much he tried to move, he couldn't, and it just made him bite his tongue. As he heard the footsteps approaching.

He struggled and struggled, move, move, move! But he couldn't move. No matter how much he fought, he couldn't move, he was completely and utterly useless.

He felt his heart drop and the breath catch in his throat when he felt the woman behind him. He really tried to fight back the shaking, but he couldn't for the life of him stop it. He couldn't focus on anything but the fact that they were about to slice him as if he were some fucking animal to be dissected. 

He did wonder where the hell would she do that, since at this point all his arms, back and chest were covered in those tubes, golden blood being drawn out day and night, or whatever the hell time it was.  

All his muscles stiffened when he felt something press against his side. So his side was it, wonderful, another thing to add to his already very fucked up month. He bit his tongue as he felt the pressure, a pressure that grew and grew until pain exploded on his side, and holy shit what the hell was she using to cut his skin? Why did it burn so fucking bad?

He clenched his jaw, tight. Breath trembling as fire sliced his skin open, vision blurring, by something he absolutely refused to acknowledge as tears. He wouldn't cry for something so stupid, he wasn't a child, he might look like one, but he was no damn child.

But that was easier said than done, because it felt as if acid was melting his skin, making a sound catch at the back of his throat, he could feel the blood trailing down his stomach, could very much feel the moment she began pulling the skin off, could feel it being peeled off, slow, agonizing, leaving nothing but an agonizing pulse of searing heat behind. 

And she didn't do it once.

She did it again, still on his side. She did it, over, and over again, blood oozing out. Breathing quickened as more fire kept coming, knives of acid slicing through his skin, blood pouring out, spilling beneath him, drops of gold filling the buckets under the platform.

And he couldn't move. It did nothing but feed the fire inside him, making it grow and grow until something snapped somewhere inside.

Enough.

His arm jerked, hard. And he has never been more pleased over a scream of pain as he was right now, as his elbow collided with what he was sure to be the face of the woman behind him, sending her crashing on the floor with a shout of surprise and pain. Chains clinking.

He felt like he was holding a planet on his shoulders, like the weight might just crush him to dust. And still, he managed to sit up, lungs burning, air far too thin, making breathing near impossible. The world spun, all burnt. People were shouting, but he couldn't understand what was being said, he couldn't even see past the violently spinning world, blurred, far away…

He tried to get up, but his arms were useless, every single one of his limbs was useless, ankles and wrists handcuffed. He crashed on the floor, head connecting with the floor, sending it all exploding in a mess of blurred shapes and deafening voices.

Hands grabbed him, and just like that, the world went black.

~

Ariel.

That's the name of the woman Constantine had told the League about, she who sold angel feathers, could be found in her antique store in the outskirts of Fawcett City.

Something that was easier said than done, since Fawcett City seemed to be the epicenter of what the League had begun calling a magical hurricane.

God knows where the people had gone to, the citizens had refused to abandon the city, and then they had completely disappeared. They never left the city, they just… disappeared.

“What even makes you think she is still there? No one in their right mind would just stay here.” Flash said as he dodged a flying monkey looking thing that went straight for his face.

“She is, trust me.” Constantine wasn't sure how he knew, but he knew. That she would be there, he has never been able to decipher what she was, but he knew she wasn't human, nor the regular inhuman being. Something about her always made him feel uncomfortable and like being anywhere but under her gaze.

But if there was someone who knew anything about any rare magic spell ingredients anyone has ever bought, she was the person to go to. 

As the antique store came into view, light could be seen filtering through the blinds of the window. 

Odd enough, not a single flower from the pots outside was missing a single petal. Completely unfazed by the wind threatening to rip trees off their roots.

The League followed after Constantine, the door was unlocked, a bell tinkling above as the door was pushed open, and the second the League stepped through the door, it was as if they had stepped into the most unnervingly calm place on Earth. It made them relax, feel far too at ease. Wrong.

Constantine seemed unbothered as he walked up to the counter, completely ignoring the very real lion lying by the counter, very close to where he was standing. The lion sniffed his leg, but that was all the acknowledgement the animal gave to the man before going back to laying down.

"Dude." Hal did not squeak. He was a grown ass man.

Constantine ignored him, hitting a bell that sent a ring echoing through the whole store. And not soon enough, the curtains opened, several doves flying out as a woman stepped out.

A very unsettling woman who had an albino snake wrapped around her shoulders. She was dressed in an odd fairy-like white dress, wearing golden armor on her arms and a crown of lavender flowers on top of her head. Golden curls falling softly down her shoulders. Her features far too soft and otherworldly for her to be human, a breathtaking beauty that also just made her look all the more unsettling.

Her eyes a near unnatural shade of the deepest green, seemingly able to look straight into their souls.

Constantine shifted uncomfortably, looking away, he could never look her in the eyes, it just made the feeling all the more wrong. Made something crawl beneath his skin that he just wanted out and gone.

“Welcome, John Constantine. You brought friends, may I know what the occasion is?” She asked, her voice light, bright, much too warm. As if greeting old friends.

“You know what's happening Ariel. Let's cut to the chase, shall we? Who has bought angel feathers recently?” Constantine questioned, pushing down that uncomfortable feeling he always got whenever he spoke to her, he always felt like something wasn't right whenever he was too harsh or ‘rude’ to her.

Like the universe itself might be judging him depending on how he treated her.

Her smile dropped. And that just made Constantine feel even more uncomfortable. Wrong.

“You are here for the Champion. Right? But I'm afraid I can't help, whoever has him did not get angel feathers from me or those who sell them.” Ariel said, sounding somewhat sad, guilty and upset that she couldn't be of much help.

“Do you know something that could help us? Anything? Maybe they got the angel feathers from someone else?” Diana asked, she wasn't sure why, but something about this woman… there was more to her than met the eye, but she couldn't feel any wrong vibes from her.

It was actually the contrary, something about her felt… calm, warm, bright, welcoming, like she was worth trusting.

“No one would sell angel feathers without knowing the spell people are aiming to cast with it. And no one would sell angel feathers to those who mean harm to those who keep the balance of things. Whoever has him got the feathers outside our circle.” She did not sound pleased, in fact, she seemed quite disgusted. As if someone using angel feathers to trap creatures was the most disgusting and vile thing she has ever heard.

“So who could have angel feathers to sell… illegally?” Superman never saw himself saying those words out loud, he never even considered that angels might be real. Ironic when one of his friends was a demi-goddess. And he was an alien. Also had two more alien friends.

But something about angels felt a whole lot different, and it felt incredibly illegal and wrong to also imagine angel feathers being able to just be bought. That sounded like some sort of taboo.

The woman frowned, seemed to be deep in thought, though the way she tilted her head ever so slightly almost felt as if she was listening to something, but Clark couldn't hear anything but the howling wind, the storm and the roars outside.  

She reminded Clark of when he first met Diana, with a static beauty that felt a bit too much to stare at for too long. Almost mystical and forbidden.

“Some demons will trade them for a good price, but no demons have sold angel feathers in months. Whoever has the Champion must have bought them long ago, maybe they might have been missing the blood of a God until recently and you are following the wrong trail.” She did have a point there.

But it was a bit difficult looking for someone who no one knew a thing about, someone who might be in Alaska for all they knew.

“You wouldn't happen to know of any God that's been slain or injured recently, right?” Hawkwoman's question got her an odd smile, this woman seriously made her hairs stand on end.

“No. I do not have that information, maybe you should ask Zeus, Living Lightning is the Greek pantheon's avatar, maybe he has clues on how to find him that he has not even realized yet.” Ariel spoke, looking at Diana with a look that seemed to know more than she was giving on.

And who was this woman, truly?

“If things do continue to get bad, maybe you should request help from the nordic pantheon, Yggdrasil's avatar might be able to seek the Champion out if things turn to worse, he is the second anchor. Or maybe you should consider calling an Endless.”

“No thank you, we will do with Zeus.” Constantine said immediately, he was not fucking getting involved with the Endless. He did not meddle, deal or so much as breathe their names.

The Endless were worse than the Champion, even incredibly extra super worse after the 90’s bullshit. No one with half a brain should ever interact with them. It was bad enough already he was getting involved with the Champion of Magic's shit. 

And the nordic pantheon? He would rather not deal with that. He had enough with greek gods, ghosts, spirits, demi-gods, poltergeists, demons, angels and fucking Lucifer. He didn't need to expand his shit show. Thank you very much.

So, Zeus was it.

~

When Billy woke up, it was to a monumental headache and sore muscles. It took him a moment to come to his senses. World muddled over, blurred, smudged, so out of sync with everything.

It also took him quite a while to connect with the world in general, to realize he no longer laid on the platform, but on the floor of some place, a place darker than last he was awake, was he even in the same place or had he been moved? He didn't like that, he hated not knowing. He-

His stomach dropped and his blood ran cold when he realized something.

He was no longer in his Champion form.

It made his throat close and shivers run down his spine, no. Shit. No. Focus. He couldn't panic now, panic was never the answer in these situations, he had to keep calm, breathe. Deep breaths. But that was easier said than done, because he was on a whole new level of exposure. They now knew the truth and he would never be safe again. They would all know his face, they would-

He choked on air as he shifted, fire exploding on his side, and he bit his tongue, hard. Eyes prickling as the tortuous throb of fire kept wrecking through his side like a landmine that's gone off. He squeezed his eyes shut, shaky breaths leaving through gritted teeth. 

Why? Why did people always felt such an urge to bring pain? All he ever did was protect them, so why did they do this? Why could they never just leave him be? He shifted again, slowly, chains clinking as he did, God it hurt , this damn body was far too human to be missing pieces of flesh and just let him be fine with it. He could feel the sticky blood, making his shirt cling to him.

He moved a bit more. Ankles, wrists and neck wielding thick shackles, even more thicker chains attached to said shackles and to the ground. He groaned as his fingers pulled at the collar locked around his neck, far too tight and uncomfortable . He moved his neck, pulling back in hopes to relieve some of the pressure on his throat. 

The sudden sound of a door creaking open made him flinch, and he turned towards where lights filtered through. The same man from these past days stepped into the room, he was sure it had been days, or maybe his time was passing extremely slow and it hasn't been even a day. Who knows?

"My, look who is awake, welcome back to the land of the living, little lightning." The mocking tone made his blood boil, even more so the nickname, no one but his family used that nickname, who did this asshole think he was?  

He glared at the man, wincing and blinking rapidly as a light was switched, bathing the room in a near blinding light, making him have to look down, his head was pounding. Everything hurt and burnt.

He heard the footsteps approach, refused to admit it made his chest tighten and his throat close, he wasn't afraid. 

He wasn't.  

He curled his fingers into fists as he watched the heavy boots come into view infront of him. He looked up, ignoring the pain that the bright lights sent into his brain, he would not look down, he was no one's dog, he wasn't about to bend down to this asshole's will. He might be small and practically defenseless right now.

But he wasn't about to be all pathetic for it. He wouldn't look down, he wouldn't let him win. He would never kneel for anyone. That's not how he was raised, he was raised to never step over others. Yes.

But he was also raised to never let others step over him. No one was above him. He was no one's pet, slave or servant.

Thus, he met Mr. Asshole's gaze, unwavering, glaring murder at him with all his might. He bit back the urge to growl, snap, anything to release some of the all consuming rage as the man knelt before him, amusement and curiosity in his eyes, much too condescending. And that damn smile… it made him seethe.

"Shapeshifting magic, right? I must say, it's impressive how your magic still worked enough to resist my binding circle."

"Or maybe your magic is just that weak." Thavma couldn't help but spit, words acid and as mocking as possible, anger burning his tongue. He felt pleased at the sight of the man's eyebrow twitching.

"Say, why are you a child?"

"None of your fucking business." He snaps, jerking back when the guy tries to touch his face, he better keep those hands off or he will be missing some fingers. Billy wasn't beyond tearing people apart through sheer force of biting.

“I can see why you would hide it, you are barely anything like this, so… human. But your blood is still useful. Granted, I will have to take it out through other methods, you know, to keep you from dying. But first…” The man pulled out a knife, made of celestial bronze.  

It made his heart skip a beat, and against his own will, he found himself backing away.

“Easy there now, there's no need to be afraid. We will just make sure you don't try to escape.” Before Billy could even process it, two more people were walking into the room, faces covered by masks, he struggled, fought, kicked and bit, but they still managed to pin him down.

His shirt is pulled up, and he sees red, but his head is being held down, making him unable to do much. And he's never felt such righteous fury as he did right now. So hateful over this stupid small form.

But most of all.

He hasn't felt this vulnerable and afraid since Black Adam. To just feel as humanity steps over him and tries to break him. Looking at him as if he were nothing but an asset, a weapon, a tool.

Never a living being.

“Stay very still, little lightning.” Billy wants to scream, none of these bastards had any right to call him that.

And still.

That's all the warning he gets before the knife is driven into his skin, the searing pain slices through his chest, almost seems to burn through his catatonic magic, he tries to not let a single sound out, bites his tongue until he tastes blood as he stares at the ceiling.

But then the knife just becomes unbearable, it lodges into something that just makes a scream rip out of his throat, lights flickering above and ground quaking beneath him. His catatonic magic tries to stir, violent but unable to come out, a thunderstorm that screams inside his chest. 

The lights above explode.

He screams, writhing, fighting to just move. Because something is very wrong. He doesn't know what they are doing but it's wrong. Wrong wrong. He wants them to stop. He kicks and screams, and he can almost hear the universe scream with him.

And still, he is unable to free himself.

He feels as if something deep within is being torn apart, like someone is flaying his magic thread by thread. Burning it all in acid. The ground cracks beneath him as his foot connects with someone's face, freeing his leg.

“Hold him down! I'm almost done!” Someone shouted somewhere, he saw white, he couldn't breathe, he was burning, something was burning from the inside out, his heart was racing, he couldn't breathe, the air was too thin, he couldn't breathe. It hurt. It burnt. There's molten lava rushing through his veins, decimating it all in its wake, tears stream down his face, blood running down his face, nose and chin.

And as something just lodges into his magic in the most wrong manner there ever was. Something just snaps inside him.

“No!”

But his shout is ignored, the last slash across his skin is delivered, and his magic twists in the most excruciating way possible, it twists and wails, burning something somewhere.

Something breaks.

And he screams. He screams as pain explodes inside, like a supernova going off, it ripples through his magic without mercy, the agony itself threatening to drive him insane, tearing his mind apart and making his magic scream with him. He screamed until everything was on fire, he screamed until the universe was screaming with him, and even as he was released, he kept screaming. He screamed until his voice could no longer be heard.

And even then, he kept screaming.

Because he could no longer feel his magic. He couldn't feel anything at all. What had they done? Where was his magic? Why couldn't he feel anything anymore?!

And so he screamed, because it felt as if something inside him had been stolen, shattered, to possibly never be fixed again.

Chapter Text

Something's happened.

The League wasn't quite sure what, but something happened. It's seen in how all magical beasts become a threat and danger on a whole new scale none of them even thought possible. Seas of fire engulfing entire cities, streets being destroyed, buildings and houses being targeted, as if looking for something.

It's as if a switch had been flipped, the few creatures the League had managed to calm down had flipped out completely.

All of them destroying and attacking everything and everyone, and the weather grew impossibly worse, earthquakes of all kinds of scales wrecking through the entire planet, vegetation bursting into flames, winds so harsh dozens of buildings got their windows exploding under the sheer force of the wind alone. Even more hell doors had burst open all over the world.

Lightning strikes down on the streets, exploding cars and setting trees on fire. It almost seems as if the entire planet is wailing, as even regular animals go crazy. 

But Fawcett City is the worst, the entire city that had been trapped in a blend of the 80's and modern times goes completely haywire as the glitching between times returns full force, but time itself explodes completely in that place as entire buildings change, disappearing, dinosaurs wrecking havoc through the streets and long dead heroes glitching into existence and disappearing just as quick.

Magic users collapse.

And Raven is barely hanging on a thread to keep Trigon away. At least that's what J'onn informed the League, since she had also collapsed and was now unconscious. 

Now the League was at the meeting room, feeling frustrated and impotent, waiting for Diana who had gone to Olympus to ask about the Champion, hopefully, she would come with answers to end this whole madness.

And come with answers she did.

Because as the door to the meeting room opened and she stepped in, she looked like she was about to be sick or kill someone, or maybe both.

"Diana? You found something?" Superman asked, worried, she didn't look right, but she didn't answer him as she went over to her chair. Sitting down and looking very sickly pale. Definitely not good. Clark's never seen anything be able to cause such an effect on her.

What had happened?

And still, no one was quite prepared for her next words.

"Captain Marvel."

That sent confusion through the room.

"What's with him? Did you hear from him?" Flash asks, hopeful, because Captain Marvel has been missing and completely silent for a whole week already, as if the world wasn't ending outside. Where the heck was the guy?

"No, the Champion, it's Captain Marvel. Zeus told me."

Her words still the room, what? But that's… what? The Champion Of Magic was Captain Marvel? How? No, scratch that, none of that mattered right now, because something the League's learnt about the Champion stood above it all.

That he was captured. Someone had summoned him and bound him. Has him prisoner somewhere.

Captain Marvel has been captured. And how did they not connect the dots? Fawcett City was the epicenter of it all, and Captain Marvel was nowhere to be found. Has been missing for the exact same amount of time this has been going on.

But who the hell even had the power to subdue Captain Marvel? When not even Superman stood a chance against him? Hadn't the magic users said the Champion Of Magic had crazy magic? How was he even being kept imprisoned?

"Did he tell you anything else? Anything that might help us find him?" Batman questioned, breaking the silence, because this was no longer just about saving the world, but also about saving one of their own. 

"He said that he couldn't be sure, the Captain was in another world, and since he wasn't actively doing anything important the gods weren't paying him much attention, my father said that when he is summoned, their mental link is blocked, they cannot reach him nor see who summoned him or where he is. But I was told that if he hasn't broken out yet, it can only mean two things."

Diana felt sick to even remember what she had been told, because now many things made so much sense. And she just hoped that it was truly just the first option. 

"Either whoever summoned him got a hold of eternium in huge quantities. Which is basically his kryptonite… or they knew enough about him to make the right spells when summoning him…" She couldn't say it out loud, it felt wrong, because Captain Marvel has always been so secretive, friendly, but never giving a single bit of information about himself.

Now she knows the reason. How can he trust people when the world did this to him whenever they got a sliver of knowledge about him?

"Which means?" Aquaman prompted as Diana's silence extended. He would have never thought that the Captain would have his own kryptonite, which he guessed made sense, no being was truly untouchable. 

"Captain Marvel uses shapeshifting magic, his true form is that of a child, he might be immortal, but in that form, he is basically much too human to be able to stand against anyone if eternium is anywhere near him. If the person who summoned him knew how to break through the spell that enhanced his form, they might have just had to cover his mouth and he would be basically harmless and unable to transform back."

"I'm sorry, what are you saying? A child?" Superman interjected, horror written all over his face.

"Immortal child. Just like Klarion and Mordred, but that's irrelevant. What's relevant here is that he is in more danger than we first thought if he isn't in his indestructible form and powerless." Diana said, Captain Marvel's age was the last thing they should be focusing on, he needed their help, who knows what those bastards might be doing to him? 

The Champion's powers were coveted by many, others wouldn't hesitate to try and make a weapon out of him.

Her brother's life and safety were at stake. His age was the last of her priorities right now. Though it was an amazing incentive to feed her rage, and what she would do to the bastards who dared to lay their hands on him.

"This… eternium, what does it look like? Who would be most likely to have it or know where to find it?" J'onn questioned, if he knew more about it, he might be able to know what to look for when reading minds on a global scale. They might finally be able to end this, and save their friend.

The group watched Wonder Woman pull out something from her pocket, a coin sized rock looking thing, glowing a toxic blue.

"Hecate has given it to me. In case one of you could somehow use it to find any, if there is any hidden and being used against him." Diana explained as she held the piece of eternium for the others to see, the fact alone that Hecate had been in Olympus was enough to tell her how truly dire things were, Hecate has never gotten along with Zeus, why? Diana wasn't sure.

But the goddess had been there. Worried sick. Which Diana did guess made sense, Hecate's magic had been one of the things that gave life to the Champion, in a sense, she could be considered something akind to a parent.

Just like Zeus. And that fact was enough to intensify her resolve to find her brother, her brother who had been missing for a week and none of them had thought suspicious. She hated how it took so long, why did her father not say something sooner? No secret was big enough when a life was at stake.

"Is it of magic origin?" Shayera asked, in Thanagar, they had tracking devices designed to read disturbances in the fabric of the space-time continuum, maybe, they could make something similar that could track the kind of magic the rock emitted. 

"It was once part of the Rock Of Eternity, but its magic became corrupted, so I would say yes." At least that's what Hecate had told her.

"Superman, do you still have the tracker I gave you to track Mxyzptlk?" Hawkwoman questioned, glancing at the kryptonian in question. He frowned.

"Yeah, it's in the fortress of solitude, why?"

"Because I think I know how to find him."

~

Billy came to his senses to the feeling of hands touching him. No longer could he feel the pressure on his wrists or ankles from the handcuffs, he couldn't quite understand the world around him, like, at all. He felt...

Disconnected.

Confused.

Wrong.

His head was pounding and he could feel a hand patting his cheek insistently.

"Are you sure that's what they said?" A far away voice came, muffled, it was like being submerged underwater. He wanted to sleep, he felt so tired.

"What do you take me for? Of course I am sure. I heard that the League has begun building a device that might be able to track the eternium, the thanagarian is working with Batman and Red Robin on it right now. This place is no longer safe."

A woman was talking, the doctor… he knew that voice… but from where? And how did she know what the League was doing? The League… ugh… he couldn't for the life of him grasp the world around him. Such a muddled mess…

And there was still a hand patting his cheek, he wanted it to stop, it sent stabs through his brain, making him see stars and his stomach twist even further. He felt so incredibly wrong and unbalanced. What had they done?

“We should leave while we still can."

No.

He didn't want to leave, if they left, the League wouldn't find him, they might never find him. He couldn't let that happen. He didn't want to be forever bound to act as a blood bank. He didn't want his blood to be stolen or sold for profit. To be used to exploit the suffering of others.

But most of all.

He just wanted this to be over. To just go home . He has never craved to hear Zeus' annoying voice or have half of the Gods fussing over him more than he did right now. He just wanted these assholes to leave him the fuck alone. His throat hurt, his stomach, his back, his chest, his arms, everything burnt and hurt. He was hungry, in pain, tired and just so fed up with everything and everyone.

"Collect everything, the notes, the samples. We will leave immediately." The man said, Billy heard chains clink somewhere, felt himself be picked up, and holy fucking Olympus, his entire body screamed, pain blaring all over. He was thrown over someone's shoulder, pain echoing, his brain refused to connect him to the outside world, he couldn't move, couldn't speak, everything swam…

The floor was covered in his own glowing blood, darker patches no longer glowing, dry. How long has he even been here? Did the League even know it was him? Or were they just saving the Champion? He didn't care, he just wanted out…

He blacked out several times, vision blurred, he heard muffled voices speaking somewhere above. Heard water, heard the rain and felt the unforgiving wind. It made him take in a deep shuddering breath, breaking out into a coughing fit as he did… he tried to speak, to call for Zeus, Hera, Hecate, Ariel, one of the Endless, Loki, hell even Superman, anyone who might be able to see or hear him even when he was like this.

But his voice didn't come out, his jaw didn't move. And for a moment, he felt the most overwhelming urge to cry as impotence and frustration gawned at him.

Just wait until he is free. He would so enjoy getting back at these assholes, this asshole and the doctor who saw wise to slice him as if he were some fucking piece of meat to cut into. He was gonna make them all wish they had never even thought about him. He could understand Oneiros now, and he could say he didn't find it in him to care anymore for what he had done to that asshole. He had deserved it if he had made him feel anything like this.

He would make these assholes pay.

He was gonna remind the world who the Champion Of Magic was. He was gonna make them all beg for mercy, he was-

His train of thoughts derailed as he found himself being lowered on something soft. The clanking of chains reaching his ears, water rushing somewhere… rain pouring… His wrists and ankles got handcuffed once again.

He didn't move a single muscle. Just laid there, he heard footsteps leave, the sound of a door closing somewhere rippling through the air like an echo in a tunnel. So far away…

Darkness engulfs the room, leaving him all alone.

He felt so weak... So tired.... Pain. Soreness. He wondered...

If he would be able to make it until the Justice League got to him, losing blood in this form shouldn't be a big deal, but whatever these assholes had done to his magic had left him feeling unbalanced, off tune, like now the world was on a completely different symphony he could never hope to grasp . 

He was so tired of everything… he would never lie to them again, he would tell them anything they wanted, he would give them anything they wanted, he just wanted them to take him away from this hell of a place… for them, anyone, to just save him.

~ 

The League had found Captain Marvel's location, or at least the location of enormous concentrations of eternium. All with the tracking device Shayera, Tim and Bruce had built.

It was a mansion near the coast in Central City, a mansion under the name of one Augustus Harkness, and here was the catch.

He was married to Elizabeth Harkness.

One of the doctors at the Watchtower. The woman hadn't been suspicious when she was hired, all staff members had extensive background checks, she had come back clean. She had never had suspicious behavior either, even less interacted with Captain Marvel, no one in the medical staff had ever been anywhere near him, there was no reason to, the man has never been hurt.

So how did she know who he was? Had she known when she applied? But she had applied long before Captain Marvel even appeared. So how? How had she known who he was? How long had she known? How long had she and her husband been planning this? How did none of them even notice there was a mole in the staff? One who had been conspiring against one of their own and possibly watching his every move?

None of them noticed. Not Batman who called himself the greatest detective in the world. Not Clark who could tell if anyone was being suspicious by their heartbeat alone. Not J'onn with his telepathy.

None of them noticed. At all.

And now, it didn't matter, because the woman somehow knew about their plans, and now the mansion was completely empty.

“Guys? I think I found something.” Flash's strained voice came through the comms, he sounded as if he might just be sick.

Superman was the first one to reach the speedster's location, the basement. And still, the sight that met him made his stomach give a violent flip, heart dropping and hairs standing on end.

Because right in the center of the room, a giant summoning circle was, drawn in gold, in the middle of the circle a platform hovered, and those toxic blue rocks, eternium, littered all the walls, floor and ceiling like some sick collage, but that wasn't even the worst of it. 

The blood was.

And Clark was 100% sure it was blood. Glowing gold or not, he knew blood when he saw it.

And the puddles and splashes of gold all over the ground and platform are definitely blood, Captain Marvel's blood. And that… it was far too much blood, more than any human could survive losing. Clark hadn't even known he could bleed. And he could have lived his whole life not knowing what Captain Marvel's blood looked like.

There were also chains, shackles and handcuffs. Bloody footprints on the ground.

And still.

None of that is what makes the group's blood run cold.

The tubes and the machine are. Some of them have seen it before. With that villain from two years ago who had been kidnapping people to extract their blood.

Those bastards had-

Batman steps inside, inspecting further, the blood seems fresh, but again, he isn't 100% sure if this blood acts as human blood, there's another door that leads to another room. And as he pushes the door open…

There's more blood.

With shackles attached to the chains on the wall, another binding circle, but what shatters through his calm expression is the bloody handprint on the wall, a child's handprint. It makes his hairs stand on end, boiling anger pooling inside his chest and lips pressing into a thin line.

Had they broken through the spell or had it broken upon being summoned? Whichever was it, it made him sick, furious to even imagine, they were extracting blood from him, and he might be badly injured if all that blood was anything to go by, no adult or child would ever bleed so much without a major injury involved.

"He isn't here, we have searched the whole place. She must have alerted him we were coming, with this weather, I cannot find them." Superman said, frustrated and with barely contained anger, because these people were hurting his friend, and he couldn't find him. The rain, the thunder, the wind, it made listening for heartbeats near impossible.

Even more so when he didn't know what heartbeats to look for.

"I found a knife made of celestial bronze, it's usually the metal gods use to make their weapons, it can cut through anything non-human." Diana informs, voice tight, yet composed. But even if she appeared to be calm, on the inside, she was burning with fury.

Frustration.

Impotence. 

Rage.

Because they had been too late, and her brother was still with those monsters. Injured, unable to fight back.

"Dammit!" Hal's shout was followed right after by a punch to the wall nearby, anger and frustration in his voice. The sense of failure was thick in the air.

They had been so close.

~

Thavma wakes up to the near suffocating urge to vomit, the world is moving, screaming… and it takes him a moment to process the fact that the screaming was actually waves, water… the sea? 

A boat.

He could work with that, he roamed his gaze around, but with his vision blurred it was a bit hard to see anything, even less with the dark room. But he did catch sight of something, a window covered by curtains right above him.

He struggled to sit up, chains clinking, heart racing and tears prickling at the corner of his eyes. It hurt, but he needed to get to the window. He managed to sit up.

Bad idea. 

He lurched forward, gagging, his stomach clenched painfully and everything just screamed, he hasn't eaten in God knows how long, his stomach was empty, nothing but air came out, and repetitive gags that just made it all hurt and burn even worse. 

Once he managed to stop it, he was left panting, shaking, far too weak and he bit back a scream of frustration when he collapsed on his back. He laid there for a moment, trying to remember a world where everything didn't hurt, when everything was right. Why did he always end up on this side of the world? Hadn't he given humans enough? Why did they always want more?

It took him a moment, almost blacked out several times. But once he felt a little better, he fought back to sit up, he tugged at the curtains, opening them a bit to reveal a window, now, if his vision would just stop swimming and his hands could stop shaking… he fought the latch, but he eventually got it open, cold breeze pooled into the room.

He managed to get on his knees, hands gripping the window sill as he leaned forward, the world was dark, sea much more aggressive than he has seen it in centuries, he took in a deep breath.

And coughed.

Fuck. Stupid voice, alright, he could work with no voice, Poseidon wasn't the only one in the sea who could help him, there were many others. He tried to whistle, at first, it didn't work, but he didn't give up, he tried, again, and again. Until he got it.

He didn't even know if it would work when he was like this, when everything was so wrongly quiet, unbalanced, off, broken.

But he needed to try.

And so he whistled, focusing as hard as he could, but it's useless, without his magic, it's nothing. But he still whistles, focusing so hard on any sliver of magic he can get, but his magic won't answer.

Angry tears blur his vision even more, fingers gripping the window sill until it hurts, no. Focus. Deep breaths. Whatever these assholes did to him to cut everything off doesn't mean he is completely cut off.

Because at the end of the day, he is still magic and lightning given life in a body handcrafted by a God, with every single thing being from a mystical beast, bones, eyes, hair, fingernails, even that with which was ground to dust to make his flesh.

No amount of spells and curses would ever be able to erase his natural connection to all that is magic, magic was him, and he was magic. It was like Ariel had told him once, he was the personification of magic itself, the Rock of Eternity's heir, he couldn't simply be rendered truly powerless.

And so he took in another breath and whistled, grasping into the little slivers of magic he could feel around, much too thin, he had been away for far too long, the only thing keeping leylines running being the remains of magic and those whose magic stood above the rest. Powerful enough to match his. Hecate, Loki and Ariel, but he knew that must be taking a tool on them. God, he didn't even want to imagine how bad the damage was to the leylines.

He would also need to victimize his way into making Ariel and Loki not bitch about it to him. They could be so infuriatingly annoying, Ariel was worse than Hecate when it came to scolding him and Loki almost seemed to match Zeus on giving him the longest lectures ever known to mankind. 

As if he somehow asked to be kidnapped and rendered powerless, unable to call for help. He knew they didn't mean ill, that they just worried sick, but being the youngest anchor of entire worlds sometimes made him have way too many people breathing down his neck, from any pantheon, world or dimension. It was embarrassing.

But also heartwarming, though he would rather die than ever admit it 

He whistled again.

And again.

And right when he was about to lose hope, his voice blended with the slivers of magic, the whistle becoming a howling echo that rippled through the water like a shockwave. Finally.

The shockwave wasn't as big as he would have wished, but the sea was nothing if not flooded with many mystical creatures.

Several were bound to hear him. And they would know exactly what to do as they heard it.

The Champion of Magic's call for help. As long as it's magic, they will instinctually react to him. Magic beings always reacted to him, always would help him whenever he needed it.

And he thanked Hecate for that.

That's the last thing he can think of before all strength leaves him, and he collapses back on the bed. World going black.

~

Augustus Harkness has never been afraid to do whatever it takes to get what he wanted, regardless of what that entailed, be it the death of millions or having to cross several lines.

His methods might not be the best, lots of people might not agree with him. But he got things done. And he's been tracking the Champion for a long time now, even began using magic from the dark dimension, a completely different magic than the one drawn from the Rock Of Eternity. So when he finally got the Champion, his magic wouldn't be affected by it, nothing would keep him from this.

This time, he would make things right, he had heard the Champion's blood could heal anything, and while he had seen the tests, he wanted to do more tests, all before he chose to use that blood on his wife, if that blood could cure anything with no side effects whatsoever, he would be able to cure Victoria, he would be able cure his daughter.

But he needed to make sure it was 100% safe. And if he had to drain the Champion's blood up to its last drop, then so be it, he had his chances, but since he chose to keep his blood to himself like a selfish and over glorified prick who can't bother to care about anyone but himself. Fine. Augustus would take it by force.

Elizabeth had infiltrated the Justice League to keep up with their data, particularly their data on magic users.

Captain Marvel turning out to be the Champion had been unexpected. He had never shown skills in magic, he, much like Superman, was just another brute whose sole purpose was to be strong and show off said fact, to fake bright personas to fool people into a false sense of safety. Nothing else.

The Champion turning out to be a child was irrelevant, it wouldn't change his plans. He would drain up to the last drop of blood from his body, he would save his daughter no matter what. The League finding out his identity hadn't been in his plans though. He should have looked more into which gods were linked to the Champion.

But no use crying over spilt milk. 

Suddenly, a bright white light exploded from the ocean, right infront of the boat. Augustus was quick to steer the boat away, but it was no use.

Not as a giant sea serpent burst from the water, lightning clapping above as a mighty roar erupted from the creature, forcing Augustus and Elizabeth to cover their ears, trying to shield away the horrid sound, a sound that seemed to reverberate through their very bones, making their hairs stand on end and shivers run down their spines. Giving them such an overwhelming urge to just run and disappear completely. 

"What the hell is that?!" Elizabeth shouted in fear as the roar died. Unsteady on her feet as the sea grew even more aggressive, shaking the boat violently, the creature leaned forward, much too close to the window, its icy breath making the glass frost over.

"Leviathan." Augustus said, voice tight, but he didn't let that deter him, he didn't know how, but he knew the Champion was to blame for this. Well, too bad, Augustus wouldn't let anyone get on his way. "Stay here and be ready to steer." He ordered his wife, pulling himself out of the initial shock, there was no time to be shocked.

"What are you going to do?"

"I am getting us out of here." Augustus dictated as he grabbed several harpoons, stalking out of the bridge. He didn't care if Poseidon or the Kraken itself showed up, he would take down anyone who tried to take what was his. He would save his daughter even if it was the last thing he did.

He threw the harpoons in the air, and using his magic, he levitated them, and then he shot. Using his magic to propel a few of the harpoons with unforgiving force, the leviathan dodged them, roaring at him before jerking back and roaring more, the sound vibrating across the ocean.

A sound wave came back, almost like an answer to the roar, like a deadly, yet beautiful lullaby. Filling the humans in the boat with an inexplicable sense of dread, skin cold, all as the ocean acquired a much darker, almost pitch black hue. The lullaby crawled through their bones.

Then several glows appeared beneath the dark waters, glows that came towards the boat, several of which began taking the shape of humanoid creatures, the few goons Augustus had brought into the boat began walking towards the edge, seemingly hypnotized by the song.

The creatures from beneath the water emerged, sirens, finfolks and mermaids, their claws dragging across the steel of the boat, eyes fully pitch black with fangs as sharp as those of piranhas. Several grabbed at those that jumped into the water to rip their limbs and throats apart. Red spreading across the waters, screams and wails as dozens of the creatures swarmed the boat, singing, wailing and growling.

The Leviathan chomped down on the deck, fangs slicing through metal and wood, its growl causing frost to layer on the deck and rails.

Augustus took the chance to shoot several harpoons into the creature's eyes and head, causing it to reel back with a deafening wail, its tail slamming into the water, bringing a giant wave into hitting the boat, almost making it turn upside down. 

A kappa of all possible things latched onto his arm, sinking its teeth into his flesh, he drove a harpoon straight through its neck, successfully decapitating it, blood spraying on his face as the creature's body hit the ground, he shook the head off, throwing it into the ocean.

Lightning roared above as an hippocampus burst from the water, eyes glowing as it slammed into the side of the boat with a ravenous scream of fury, hooves breaking through the deck as it almost managed to bite his head off, he dodged it barely in time, yet again, sending another harpoon that went right through its chest, but not even that stopped it from lunging forward again and grabbing his leg, Augustus crashed on the ground, he sent harpoon after harpoon, blood spraying everywhere and chunks of flesh dropping everywhere, but the animal refused to let go as it began dragging him towards the water.

Augustus kicked at it, throwing harpoons, cursing as the sirens tried to reach for him. Shit. Shit. Shit.

“Augustus!” Elizabeth's fearful shout came as she stepped outside at the bridge.

“Get back inside!” Augustus screamed back, but his wife did not listen, she never listened, she jumped down the ladder and ran up with a crossbow, pointing at the hippocampus and shooting it straight in the head, she loaded it again, and shot again. Forcing the creature to release him as it finally died.

Elizabeth dropped the crossbow and was quick to run up to her husband, his leg was twisted the wrong way, the hem of his pants destroyed, giant teeth marks bleeding profusely. 

“Can you get up?” She asked, quickly helping him up anyway. Away from the rails and the clawing hands.

“Go back inside! It's not safe out here!” He shouted, pushing her away and lifting the few remaining harpoons, using them to shoot at the sirens, finfolks, mermaids and kappas that were trying to get into the boat. What were kappas even doing here? Those things were from Japan and they weren't even sea creatures but from lakes, rivers and ponds!

A capricorn burst from the water, its thunderous bellow ringing through the air in perfect sync with a mighty thunder that split the skies apart, it was much too unexpected, blood sprayed everywhere as a head hit the ground, rolling up to his feet.

He stood there, frozen.

Staring at the body of his wife, lodged straight into the capricorn's horns. Suddenly, the world zoomed out, hands shaking as the harpoons dropped with a metallic clank.

“Eli- Elizabeth.”

The creature jerked back, shaking its head and slamming the body onto the side of the boat before lunging at it, teeth clamping down on it, flesh tearing apart and bones crushing as it chomped it in half, hooves breaking bones as one of them stomped on her legs to keep her down, guts spilled out onto the boat, blood splashing across the goat's muzzle as its glowing red eyes stared straight at him. 

It swallowed the body. And then it snatched the other half. A hippocampus bursting out of the water to grab one of her legs, ripping it out with a violent yank before jumping back into the water.

The capricorn still stared at him.

It swallowed the rest of the body.

He stood there, frozen, gaze dropping to the head at his feet, empty blue eyes staring back at him. No, this wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't-

A kelpie jumped into the boat, it slammed into him, sending him crashing into the ground before its jaws seemed to almost unhinge, snatching the head up, Elizabeth stared at him from the creature's mouth. The kelpie shut its mouth, crushing the skull and making blood spray everywhere, making Elizabeth's eyes pop out as her brains leaked out from her eye sockets, one of the eyes bouncing on the ground and rolling towards him. 

The kelpie swallowed the head, and just like that, it jumped back into the ocean alongside the capricorn. And just like that every wail and scream from the creatures disappeared, leaving nothing but the leviathan staring at him.

The boat rocked violently, as if something big was coming from below, but he could care less, all he could do was stare.

And stare.

The rain made the blood become a pink mess on the deck as he stared at Elizabeth's eyeball near his feet. How did this happen? Why did this happen? All he had wanted was to save his daughter. To give her the chance to live a longer life, to be able to watch her grow, to see her get married and have kids of her own. All he had wanted was to see his daughter live, and now… Now his wife was gone. His wife-!

“Elizabeth!”

~

The League had no idea where to even begin looking, scouring the mansion for clues hadn't helped at all. There was nothing. 

Thunder still rumbled outside, the wind still howled, and Marvel was very much nowhere to be found. Suddenly, glass exploding was heard from somewhere, quickly followed by the sound of…

"Hooves?" 

A horse bursts through the doors that led to the kitchen, a black horse that looks pulled out of a nightmare appears, with algae for mane and tail, and a row of fangs on a mouth split open bigger than a regular horse’s mouth should. Eyes glowing an eerie cold blue and coat shining green, and the thing pounced straight towards the group.

Everyone jumped back, everyone except Arthur who didn't so much as move, the horse came to an abrupt stop infront of him, stomping on the ground with both front legs and letting out a shrill much too eerie to be considered a neigh.

And Aquaman looked completely unfazed by it.

Aquaman who stares at the kelpie, usually, not even his powers were enough to get these things to listen to him, they listened to no one at all , they were wild, untamed and very dangerous to approach, they never spoke to him as other sea creatures did, always ignoring him, so they were usually left alone, they weren't a problem and they didn't attack as long as no one stepped into their territory.

But this one seeked him out. And as he heard it speak, he felt his blood run cold. But also relief hit like a truck, he turned to look at the others over his shoulder.

"She says the Champion has been retrieved, the leviathan and the aspidochelone have him alongside the one who took him." Arthur informs, turning back to the kelpie. "Would you lead the way?"

The kelpie shakes its head up and down, stomping the ground once again.

“She says she will take us there.” Aquaman told the others.

"Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, go with him. We will meet at the Watchtower." Batman ordered, choosing those who wouldn't have trouble reaching a place in the middle of the sea nor have trouble with the wind or the rain. Also the strongest ones who wouldn't have trouble subduing whoever had caught Captain Marvel. 

Right now, time was of the essence. They would get the medbay ready and put the Watchtower on lockdown, no one but League members and a selected few would be allowed in it until further notice . 

The group was quick to get on the move, Aquaman following after the kelpie as it made its way back into the ocean, he made sure to secure his comm before taking a dive into the ravenous sea, as aggressive as it was, he was still perfectly capable of swimming through it.

Superman for his side led Wonder Woman and Green Lantern by following Arthur's heartbeat, an easy task since regardless of the noise he knew every League member's heartbeat like the palm of his hand, he would always be able to find them in a crowd, on the other side of the planet, he would always find them .

If only Captain Marvel had had a heartbeat for Clark to learn by heart. They would have found him already. He wouldn't have had to suffer whatever hell those monsters had made him go through. He just hoped it wasn't too late.

They flew through several waterspouts, thick fog creeping in.

And from amongst the fog, an enormous silhouette could be seen.

"Watch out for the aspidochelone, it's generally peaceful, but don't doubt for a second that it's in a bad mood." Came Aquaman's warning voice through the comm, the fog lessened, revealing the silhouette to be a giant turtle with some kind of forest on its back, a partially destroyed boat was aground on it.

Superman didn't waste a second to scan it with his x-ray vision, immediately locating a body in the cockpit.

"There's someone in the cockpit." Clark called out, using the comm since the howling wind and rain made it impossible to speak normally. The giant sea serpent he hadn't noticed yet growled as Arthur stepped onto the giant turtle's shell. The atlantean only threw a look at the giant serpent before turning to look at Superman.

"He says the guy has run into the forest. There are kelpies and kirin looking for him but they are yet to find him." Aquaman informed, sounding displeased.

"Leave that son of a bitch to me." Hal exclaimed, anger curling in his stomach as he took off into the forest. He would teach this bastard what it meant to mess with his friends.

"Clark, go with him, we don't know how dangerous that man might be." Diana said as she landed on the bridge of the boat, the kryptonian nodded before quickly following after Hal.

Diana was quick to get to the cockpit, Aquaman right behind her. The door was locked, but that was no issue, she had no qualms about snapping the doorknob and shoving the door open. The whole room was… quite dark actually.

The only light being that which filtered through the parted curtains.

That's when she saw him. 

A boy no older than half of the Teen Titans or Young Justice, laying completely still on the bed.

She quickly stalked into the room, hurrying over to him. There were shackles of celestial bronze on his wrists and ankles, a long chain attaching them to the wall by the bed, and there was so much blood, soaking his shirt, covering his face, even the bed was soaked in it. And he was so pale, eyes glazed over and half open as he stared at nothing. By the gods, what had they done to him?

But he was breathing, she could see the rise and fall of his chest, it was enough to make some relief wash over her.

“Captain?” She called, careful as she came to stand by the bed, not wanting to spook him, but he didn't so much as acknowledge her presence. She took in a deep breath, reaching out to touch him, her hands trembling, fury, pain, fear of hurting him any further, she didn't even know what the reason for her trembling was.

But the second she touched his shoulder, the second he flinched away violently.

“Hey, hey, it's alright. It's me, Diana, I mean you no harm, you are safe now, I promise.” She was quick to assure, her heart broke at the sight of his fearful expression, none of the familiar joy and brightness was anywhere to be seen. And she would tear apart the bastard who had done this.

He stared at her for a moment, frowning, he seemed to be having a hard time recognizing her or even staying awake, she sat by his side, waiting, and the second realization flashed in his eyes, the second his eyes opened wider, and Diana had no idea where did he pull it from when he looked so frail and sick, but he actually managed to turn and go for her, she barely had any time to grab him, making sure he wouldn't fall of the bed as he all but climbed on her lap. As if trying to hide in her arms.

It broke her heart, throat burning and eyes stinging.

“It's alright, I've got you, you are safe now. We are gonna get you home.” She assured softly, glancing at Arthur and motioning to the chains still attached to Marvel. Aquaman didn't need to be told twice as he went over to the pair, easily snapping the shackles off, successfully freeing his legs and arms.

“Get him to the Watchtower, I will see what's taking Superman and Lantern so long.” Arthur told, they needed to get Marvel medical attention, like, quickly. No one should be bleeding so profusely nor looking so dangerously pale. What the hell had those bastards done to him?

Diana for her side nodded, she shifted Marvel a bit before hoisting him up as gently as possible, but that didn't stop him from moaning in pain and jerking in her hold.

“It's alright, I know it hurts. But I need you to hold on for a little bit longer, I promise you it will all be over soon. Just hang in there.” Diana says as she walks out of the room, her grip on him firm yet gentle, she quickly takes off the second she is outside the cockpit, she needs to get him to the Watchtower. He was bleeding all over, so much blood. 

As Diana flew with him through the storm, the rain seemed to almost part for her, the wind seeming to carry her to fly faster without jostling her charge, and below, she could see dozens of creatures following after her through water, kelpies, hippocampus, capricorns, finfolks, sirens, mermaids, kirin, sea serpents, kappas, vodyanoy, and many other dozens.

“Batman? I have him, he is bleeding profusely and he is… he isn't transformed. I don't know what they did to him, but he is barely responsive.” She informed through the comm, gripping her brother tighter against her chest, he felt so cold, so frail and still.

It made knots tie in her throat. How did it take them so long to find him? How could these creatures have found him so quickly? They should have looked more, they should have connected the dots faster, she should have demanded answers from her father much more sooner. And by the gods would she be having words with Zeus and the others, how could they just stay quiet? Why did they let it get to this?

They should have told her everything the second he went missing. She didn't care about rules and laws of the universe, this was her damn brother they were talking about and she wouldn't care about breaking all rules and laws for him.

But now it was too late, and she feared they might have also been too late to save him at all.

~

Augustus Harkness had been captured. With several broken ribs, a broken leg and a dislocated shoulder. No one truly needed to know which wounds were already there previous to being captured and which weren't.

And since no one was quite comfortable giving him up to the authorities just yet, they had chosen to put him in one of the holding cells from the Watchtower, very closely monitored.

Elizabeth Harkness had not been found yet, J'onn couldn't read Augustus' mind, and the man had been silent since his capture. So she was currently MIA. 

The weather had calmed somewhat, and while magic beasts were no longer violent, they were still roaming around. Same as how the magic users were still very much unconscious. 

Captain Marvel on the other hand… the League had stood watch over him as a selected few medics tended to him, none of the medics had been told who exactly they were treating, but the League still kept watch over Marvel, refusing to let anyone unfamiliar alone with him for even a second when he was in such vulnerable state.

It was that what had led the League to be met with a sight that would haunt them for the rest of their lives, as if the appearance of a teenager wasn't enough.

He had been butchered, as if he had been nothing but a lab rat to be opened and cut pieces off. Several of his ribs could be seen, and not enough with that, they had carved a magical sigil on his chest that neither Diana or Shayera recognized.

And he was also covered in bruises and needle marks.

The medics had given a detailed report on his injuries and condition.

Dehydration, malnutrition, a mild concussion, a broken leg and severe blood loss.

And he wasn't healing, like, at all.

His state had led to Superman having to hold Wonder Woman from going to the holding cells and tearing Augustus apart, something many of them also craved to do. To rip the bastard apart limb by limb. Because how could he do something like that? It hadn't even stopped him the fact that he was harming a child? Who could do that to another living being? Let alone a child?

Captain Marvel had always been so joyful, so kind, always willing to help anyone and everyone, always smiling, always great at comforting others, always being the first at trying to talk down villains. His positive energy was always so infectious, the child-like wonder… because it had always been a child. A child no older than 12, immortal or not.

And he had been reduced to this, laying on a bed, looking sickly pale and covered in dozens of bandages. The magic users had said so, that the Champion Of Magic was constantly hunted, and suddenly all his secretive and mysterious behavior made a whole lot of sense. For him to not want to tell anyone anything about himself in fear it might be used against him.

They tried to not take it personal, they couldn't imagine having to live a life where you were constantly chased for your power, the proof of what people were willing to do was right here. Augustus had been draining his blood.

Who could be so sick as to do something like that? Captain Marvel had never hurt anyone, he had always been so kind, he didn't deserve what those bastards did to him.

But now all the League could do was help him heal and hope for the best.

~

The first time Billy wakes up, he wakes up with a pounding headache, his body is burning and he feels incredibly sore.

The world is muddled around him, a fog clouding his mind, and everything hurts.

The strong smell of disinfectant hit his nose with such force his eyes grew watery, his vision was blurred, everything was blurred, far away, spinning . All he could see were smudged shapes and white as he sits up, people are talking, but he can't understand a word they are saying, all he hears is a mess of gibberish, it feels like he is underwater. 

And why was everything so blindingly white? Was he in a lab? He was in a lab wasn't he? He has been in a lab before. Where worms would be stuck through his ears and the world would become so unstable and out of reach it felt like watching someone else pilot his body. Do things he didn't want to do and hurt people he didn't want to hurt.

It was like Black Adam, like the grand canyon, the Bermuda Triangle, where everyone but him had a say in what he did. He hated labs .

The shapes moved, and he jerked back, his heart dropped as the ground, bed? Beneath him disappeared, but he didn't hit the floor nor pain came, he landed on something soft and somewhat familiar, but he couldn't remember what. And his magic still didn't want to answer him, he watched a blob of green approach, they were talking, but he couldn't for the life of him understand it, and he didn't have any qualms about clutching the little bit of strength he had to stand up.

He tried to run, but something blocked the door, green and much too strong to budge under his miserable strength as he hit it. No. Why couldn't they leave him alone? Why did people always insist on making everything harder? He has never done anything to them. He wants out of here. He wants them to leave him alone. He wants them all to stop . 

And when hands touched him, he let panic speak for him as he wrangled the thin slivers of magic in the air.

"Stay away!"

Something exploded somewhere.

~

Hal had been the one watching over little Marvel when this one woke up, he was quick to realize something wasn't right, regardless of what he said, Marvel didn't seem quite there nor to recognize him at all. And when the kid fell off the bed Hal had made a cushion to catch him right in the nick of time.

He had tried to calm him down while also blocking the door, because he shouldn't be walking, he shouldn't be moving around with a broken leg and all that blood loss. But Marvel doesn't recognize him and Hal really doesn't know what else to do.

He makes the rookie mistake of touching a panicking person.

And Hal had no time at all to react to the explosion that rang through the Watchtower, far too close. Because the wall exploded and through it stepped Constantine, with terrifying and very unnatural glowing eyes, they weren't glowing orange as Hal was familiar with but a burning gold, gold lichtenberg marks covering his skin as he lunged at Hal without a single word.

"Dude, wait!" He shouted, dodging the punch engulfed in flames, Dr. Fate also stepped in the room, and so did Zatanna, the three of them sporting the same marks and same glowing eyes as they attacked Hal with their magic. "Guys! The magic gang is awake and I think little Marvel is controlling them! A little help here!" 

Hal cursed as he dodged a flaming punch from Constantine just to receive a kick from Zatanna that sent him flying across the room, and fuck what the hell was happening? He didn't want to hurt them, was this Marvel's doing? Man had this guy been holding out on him if he could mind control people.

And oh fuck.

"Oh shit, Marvel is gone! Someone find him!" Those were Hal's last words before Dr. Fate appeared right behind him and an explosion of unforgiving pain rippled through his insides before he was crumbling to the ground.

~

Stopping Constantine, Zatanna and Dr. Fate wasn't as difficult once Shayera got over her initial shock and knocked them out with her maze, successfully cutting off any magic influence they might have been under.

Finding Captain Marvel? That one had been much more difficult. He was found, eventually, Red Robin had called Batman, apparently, Raven had brought him to the Titans' tower. She had just appeared muttering the same word over and over again.

Safe. Safe. Safe.

All the League could think of was that Marvel might have asked her to take him somewhere safe. Once Marvel had lost consciousness, so had Raven, the League had taken them back to the Watchtower, the Watchtower was the safest place to keep them at.

Hal was fine, had a broken rib, but he would live.

If Marvel could control people… they would have to keep a closer eye on him, they couldn't afford having him making everyone attack each other. Nor him leaving the Watchtower or walking at all. He was in no condition to be walking around.

Chapter Text

Flash was the one watching Captain Marvel next time he woke up, was changing the cold cloth on his forehead, because dude had a sick fever that seemed to completely refuse to go down at all.  

That's when his eyes open, and Barry is very glad he didn't immediately choose violence as he did with Hal yesterday. 

"Hey man." He greets, nervous but hoping to also sound friendly, in case he doesn't recognize him and decides to throw him across the room.

Mini Marvel of course doesn't answer.

He didn't seem to be quite there, eyes glazed over, barely open at all.

Barry did almost have a little heart attack when a hand reached out of nowhere, fingers curling around his wrist in a deadly grip for someone who had lost more blood than any living being would ever survive losing.

"Cap?" He calls, a bit anxious but also concerned.

"Fire." The kid's voice came out seven levels of wrong, strained, broken and much too pained.

"Fire? You feel hot?" Flash asked, confused, usually, people with fevers felt cold, not hot. "You have got a really bad fever, I'm sure you will feel better once it breaks."

"No."

Billy was having troubles getting the words out, but he needed to, now that he was feeling less like shit, he needed to speak, but the damn unnatural silence of the world was seriously messing with his head. Everything was so off balance, so twisted, and broken, and off. He wanted to scream, to cry, to bang his head against a wall until something could be heard. Because the world was quiet and he couldn't hear anything.

And he felt sick, so sick it was uncomfortable to even breathe, and still, he took in a deep breath in hopes to diminish some of the suffocating feeling.

It didn't work.

It just made him choke on air and his stomach twist violently, a choked, not quite gasp leaving him.

"Oh shit, bucket, bucket, bucket." Flash all but lunged at the trashcan near the door, coming back in a blink just in the nick of time to pull Marvel into a sitting position and shove the trash can into his hands.

And all Billy knew was pain, sweet, unforgiving, tortuous pain. His insides were burning, his stomach was clenching, something was being crushed somewhere. Something was writhing, twisting, the universe was screaming once again, screaming, screaming, wailing. Fire was pouring out of his body through his mouth. Fire fire fire fire. Molten lava searing through his esophagus and melting everything in its path. Hot. Fire. 

And when it decided to stop, all he could see was white, all he could feel was pain, all he could smell was blood, all he could hear was nothing, absolutely nothing. The leylines weren't singing, magic wasn't singing, the world wasn't singing. The Gods weren't speaking.

He was alone.

Again.

It was happening all over again, just that this time it wasn't some random world he could escape from, but his own. His own world had betrayed him. When all he had ever done was to be good. So why? Why had they done this? Why did everyone always insist on making everything harder? 

How had Oneiros dealt with this When Burgess imprisoned him? How had Loki dealt with it when Thanos brainwashed him? To be robbed of your autonomy, manipulated, caged, how did they survive that? How did they manage to not go against the world and still choose to help and protect? He had tried so hard to get past everything.

But this had made it all just feel like too much, first Lex with his mind controlling worms, then Teth turning him into a killer, Liserole making him commit genocide and Kodak forcing him into becoming a mass murderer. And now this. 

He was so sick of it all.

He didn't know if it was the heat rushing through his veins. The pain. The hunger. The deafening silence of the universe. The warm hand rubbing soft circles on his back. The soft and comforting assurances, after he had thought so maliciously about reminding people who the Champion Of Magic was, to take revenge on these ungrateful assholes.

He didn't know what it was, all he knew was that it all became too overwhelming to deal with, and the all consuming knot of incandescent heat in his chest snapped. It unraveled violently, shattering into a million pieces.

He couldn't stop them, couldn't do a single thing as the heat inside his chest spilled out in the form of tears. Tears that just wouldn't stop.

~

Flash wasn't sure what to do, even less when mini Marvel started crying, and oh Christ he could have lived his whole life not knowing whether Marvel could cry or not. Because he sounded so tormented, so broken and desolated it made Barry want to cry himself to sleep.

He was great at comforting people, civilians, kids, adults, his friends, you name it, but how the hell did he even begin comforting someone who has gone through what Marvel just did? Would he be pissed if Barry tried to comfort him as he would a child? Or would comforting him as he would an adult come out detached?

He didn't know, but that didn't matter much, he took the trash can from him and put it on the ground, and without further ado, he went for the infallible method.

A hug.

He wasn't quite expecting him to cling to him, but he didn't mind, Barry liked to think himself an amazing hugger, and so he hugged him, his arms firm, yet gentle. Wanting him to know that he could break free if he wanted to, but also to know he was safe. He wasn't there anymore, he was among friends now, safe.

And still, each sob tore right through his heart, he should have known something wasn't right when Marvel didn't show up when all started to go to shit, he should have known, because Captain Marvel would never ignore dozens of people if they were in danger. He would have been there in seconds, helping evacuate people and fighting demons.

But none of them realized the truth staring at them in their faces. And he had been hurt, because they were too damn blind to see that one of their own wasn't just ‘gone on one of his mysterious disappearances’. 

“It's alright, I know it doesn't look like it now. But you are gonna be just fine, you are not alone, we are here for you.” Barry assured, not knowing what to say, but needing him to know this, that he wasn't alone. They were here for him.

His eyes stung though, a knot stuck at the back of his throat, oh to just go back in time and stop this madness from ever happening. But he knew he couldn't, if what he had heard about the Champion was something to go for, Barry would just be giving him more trouble.

So all he could do was hold him and hope that that somehow would make him feel a little bit better. 

He didn't know for how long he stood there, just holding him and rubbing soft circles around his back, even as the sobs died down, mini Marvel didn't pull back, and Barry didn't either, he once heard that sometimes, it was best to let people let go first, because you never knew how much they needed that hug.

Maybe it was a Disney thing, he didn't know, but he lived by that motto, never letting go first. He better than anyone understood the need of wanting a hug when the universe seemed to just be hell-bent on taking everything from you. When you were filled with nothing but rage, pain and loneliness towards the unfairness of everything and everyone.

He knew, because that had been him when he lost his mother, then his father, and then going from one foster home to another before Iris' dad ended up taking him.

Point was, he didn't let go.

And in the silence of the room, he heard the broken whisper.

"Shayera." Had Barry not been this close, he wouldn't have caught it at all.

"Shayera?" He repeated, confused as mini Marvel pulled back from the hug, though even if he did pull back, Barry still held his shoulders, afraid that he might topple over and fall off the bed. Pain was written all over mini Marvel's face as he looked up at Barry.

A little nod was his answer. He was trembling, and Flash could tell he might be dizzy by the way his eyes moved or how he leaned forward ever so slightly. 

"What's with her?" Flash asked, still confused, Captain Marvel and Shayera weren't exactly close, so why would he ask for her? Barry would have expected him to ask for Diana or something like that.

"Her maze. I need it." He spoke, leaning forward with a pained moan, Barry could hear the shaky breath, could feel how tense his muscles were.

And while he didn't understand why he needed Shayera's maze, he still reached up to his comm.

"Shayera? Cap is awake, he says he needs your maze."

"What? What for?" Even if Hawkwoman asked that, Flash heard her get up from wherever she was.

"I don't know. Come quick." Barry said, feeling little Marvel's fingers grip his arm.

It didn't take Hawkwoman long to arrive at the medbay, alone, Barry was glad he used a direct line for her. He was sure Cap wouldn't like having everyone hovering over him right now.

"Cap? She is here." Barry called, noticing mini Marvel had closed his eyes and looked completely miserable. He was shaking harder now, and still, he had the strength to pull away from him, throwing a look at Shayera.

"What do you need?" Hawkwoman asked, her tone unusually subdued. And dare Barry say, gentle.

"Break."

Shayera perked up at that.

"Break? You want me to break something? What is it?" She questioned, oh, she was more than excited at the prospect of getting to break something right now, she would break the president's face with her maze right now if the mini Captain asked it. She was itching for a fight.

Because while she and Marvel might not be close, while she did found him irritating at times, he was still her friend, and Shayera would skin alive anyone who fucked around with her friends.

It had taken all her self control to not smash Augustus Harkness' face with her maze when Aquaman, Green Lantern and Superman had brought him. 

And still.

She wasn't quite prepared for the little Captain to point at himself. No. His chest, right where the weird sigil was at, she had entertained the idea of damaging it when he was first brought in, but she didn't recognize that sigil and she knew better than to mess with spells she didn't recognize. 

So she hadn't touched it.

But if he was telling her himself to damage it…

"You want me to use the maze to damage the sigil on your chest?" She still asked, needing confirmation that she might not be reading this wrong.

A short nod was her answer.

"Wait, what? You are gonna use that on him?" Flash asked, alarm hitting him as he shielded mini Marvel from Shayera.

"I told you before, that sigil might be doing something to him that we are not aware of, I didn't touch it because I didn't know whether it would be a bad or a good idea. But since he is asking it's clearly hurting him. So, move or I will move you myself." Hawkwoman stated, her voice calm, she wasn't threatening him.

She was just informing him of what would happen in the next few seconds were he not to listen.

Flash held her gaze for a moment, but he still ended up stepping back, Barry knew, that despite Shayera's harsh personality, she would never actually hurt anyone who didn't deserve it.

Hawkwoman came up to stand before him. She did not feel her heart quiver at the sight of him up close, looking so incredibly small and like a gust of wind alone could knock him over.

"Alright, how do we do this?" She questioned, clearing her throat and resting her maze on her shoulder. 

"Break it. With the maze, cut the lines apart." His voice was rough, as if there was something wrong with his throat, or maybe it was the fact that he hadn't drank anything for God knows how long. But she still understood every word clearly.

"I'm sorry?"

"Please." He almost begged, giving her a pleading look that took Shayera's heart and crushed it to dust. And why did he have to look at her like that? She didn't want to hurt him any further, why did he have to ask that of her?

Shit.

But she trusted him, if he was asking this, it had to be fine, right?

"... Fine… Just lay down." She ended up sighing in defeat, grabbing his arm and carefully helping him lay down on his back. "Flash, hold him down, just to be safe." She didn't want this to take longer than it should nor accidentally hurt him.

"But that's-"

"Do it." The mini Captain cut off, staring at Flash, and Barry really hated how easily he bent to it, why was he agreeing to this? God, he felt sick.

And still.

He walked over to the bed, mini Marvel was agreeing to this, and as Hawkwoman said, that sigil might be doing something to him none of them was aware of, better get rid of it as soon as possible.

Didn't make him feel any less worse when he came to stand on the other side of the bed, holding mini Marvel's shoulders to keep him down.

Hawkwoman for her side also didn't feel better at all. Even if the little Captain wasn't looking at her but at the ceiling, it didn't change the fact that he looked far too small and frail right now, nor the fact that she could see how he was clutching the bed sheets beneath him. He was afraid, but still asking this of her.

She took in a deep breath, alright, like a bandaid, she had broken dozens of sigils before, this was the same, just on human skin, on one of the very people she would kill for. She lifted the maze, but she couldn't bring herself to move any further.

"I won't resent you for it, it's something that needs to be done and you have the only means that can get it done." Came mini Marvel's voice, not even once did he look at Shayera. But at least it made Shayera feel a tiny bit better. Right. She was doing this to help him, she wasn't hurting him for shits and giggles, she was doing it to help him.  Because it's what he asked. Because it was the right thing to do.

It didn't make her feel any less worse though.

Meanwhile, Billy tried to stay still, to not look at Shayera nor focus on Barry's hands holding him down, he could feel the speedster's shaky grip, could hear the slight tremor in Shayera's voice, and it just made him feel even more sure that they could be trusted.

Because regardless of it all, despite how horrible he felt, how a part of him wanted to scream, cry and destroy everything until the world learnt once and for all to leave him alone.

Another bigger part of him, the one who always ended up winning over, was yet again engulfing everything as he saw Shayera's hesitation to hurt him, as he remembered Flash's comforting presence… the fact that they had come for him, they knew exactly who he was, and they had still helped him. They hadn't taken advantage of the situation to imprison him or try to negotiate with him as others had done in the past.

It was this what always ended up making him come back, giving the world a second chance.

Because even when the world kicked him down, even when people did nothing but hurt him and force him to hurt others.

There were always those who reminded him that not everything was lost. That hope was to never be lost for the good people would always outnumber the bad.

And with that last thought, the maze came down, tearing through the sigil with a precision only Shayera could have, and just like that the world snapped.

Darkness engulfed him.

~

The magic users woke up, it was as if the second Hawkwoman had broke the sigil, a switch had been turned, the weather had become less violent, storms becoming nothing but a fleeting rain, waterspouts, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, it all disappeared completely altogether.

And while the magic beasts did disappear, some still glitched into existence at random intervals, and Fawcett City… the glitches had diminished but it still looked pretty affected, though less chaotic.

“So? How is he? Is he gonna be alright?” Hal asked, watching Dr. Fate check on mini Marvel, his hands touching both sides of his head, Zatanna was also there, holding his hand, and Constantine seemed to be inspecting the deformed sigil on his chest.

The three seemed to alternate in between tasks, asking someone with magic seemed like a good idea to check on another magic person. Maybe they could find if anything else was wrong or to worry about with him.

“The sigil… I have seen it before…” Constantine said, he had seen this before, he was sure of it, in- oh. Well fuck. That made sense, somewhat. And fuck, what the hell had this guy been thinking? What even went through the heads of people who messed with these creatures? There was a line to just not be crossed, lines not even Constantine would cross.

Like messing with the fucking anchors of reality. He had seen what fucking with one of those did to the world, when he was a kid, granted, at the time he hadn't known what it was, but once he stepped into the magic world, he had heard about it.

About how some amateur thought smart to capture an Endless. Something that wreaked havoc through the entire world with the sleep sickness, because a fucking dimwit captured the Sandman and refused to let him go, all for his stupid greed .

He had heard his cousin had met him. Had called the Endless a sad wet cat, whatever the hell that meant.

Point was.

Now he could add two to the list. He never expected the Champion to be one of those anchors, but considering magic was one of the universe's constants… it did make sense. The Endless were anchors, so were the Presence, several gods from different pantheons, and he guessed so was the Champion.

Anchors were creatures whose sole existence were webbed to reality in such a way that messing with one of them could completely change how the world itself worked. Destroying the balance of things and just throwing chaos into the world.

And Christ, what had been going through Marvel's head when he decided that it was a good idea to parade around and risk the wrong people finding out who he was? Anchors didn't even roam the world much, prefering to keep their distance from humans and their affairs.

“He will be fine, though I believe it would be easier for him if he were to go back to the Rock.” Constantine ended up conceding, when this sigil was involved, nothing but the being's source of self could aid it into healing, or fixing what has been broken.

“How do we get him there?” Aquaman asked, the little Captain looked much too pale, and Arthur felt like they really might not be equipped to help him at all. He looked the same, if not worse than when he was first brought in two days ago. He would have expected that someone like Marvel would have some sort of super healing or something.

“You can't. No one but the Champion knows where it's, and no one but him can enter it.” Zatanna told, and even if she said that, the Rock of Eternity was a sacred place, not just about anyone could enter it. But she could feel his magic, and Constantine was right, he really should be taken to the Rock. 

She knew that sigil, it's the same sigil used to cut off the anchors from their source. A sigil made by humans, only capable of being cast by forbidden magic. 

“So what do we do?” J'onn questioned, he didn't like not knowing what to do, not being able to help. Even less when one of the people he cared about was hurt, Captain Marvel has always been so kind, and his quiet mind has always been a welcomed haven to have around when things got too much.

He didn't deserve this. And J'onn feared what the aftermath of this might be, he knew how it felt like, to be betrayed by the very people you wanted to help, to have your freedom stolen from you for no reason whatsoever, to be seen as nothing but an asset, a tool, anything but a person with feelings and a mind of its own.

He hoped that Marvel's goodness had not been tainted, that what happened wouldn't make him lose his kindness and positive outlook on the world. But J'onn knew that that might not be possible. No one who went through what Marvel did ever went back to being as they were before. 

That's not how things worked.

And that was fine too, J'onn would still be there for his friend, as the Captain has always been for him when everything got too much, when the memories got to him. He was always there.

Thus, J'onn would also be there for him.

“We should wait until he wakes up. If he doesn't wake up in the next hours, it would be most advised for Diana to get Zeus. He's the Greek pantheon's avatar, meaning those who give him their powers also have access to the Rock.” Dr. Fate spoke, he could feel Marvel's magic, it was all over the place, and at the same time, nowhere. It made his hairs stand on end. Wrong. 

He just hoped this damage could be fixed.

~

Billy woke up feeling…

Like shit. Plain, and simple.

He felt weak, sore and his senses were muddled, like having cotton stuck inside his head while also being underwater. A sharp ripple kept pulsating through the world, he could hear the symphonies of every single branch of the multiverse.

Yes.

But they were horrid glitches of claws being dragged through metal in varying tones and notes. Like a string instrument missing several cords or an off tune piano. A screaming violin and a trumpet that's just noise and no song whatsoever. A torn drum. It's all the most off-tune, fucked up concert ever known to mankind, the whirring wails of the thin tendrils of magic don't help at all. 

But he guessed that's what happened when several different people from different pantheons tried to keep magic from collapsing, a clashing mess that sounds like hell is throwing a concert . He should give them a gift for their efforts though. At least they were trying, it was better an all over the place mess of varying magics than reality collapsing for the sudden disappearance of magic all at once.

And he was glad he had given the sorcerer supremes to Loki and Hecate. If something happened to him the universe would still have them since their magic wasn't connected to the Rock but other outstanding sources of magic capable of matching his.

Still.

None of that stopped him from covering his ears, his stomach twisting as he curled into himself, something felt wrong, inside. The mystical plane felt like an enormous mass of badly done stitches with gaps that bleed magic into the world, definitely meant magic beasts were for everyone to see. Shit. That was so not safe for everyone involved.

And Fawcett City… he hoped the city was okay, that was the place that most suffered when he got hurt, and man did he feel like shit. Like something was ill-fitting. Shredded. Uncomfortable and just not right. His magic was there, but it felt so wrong he wanted to just peel it off.  

Heat resonated in his chest, rushing through his veins. He wanted to just die.

“Captain?” Superman's sudden voice almost gave him a heart attack, he struggled to open his eyes, biting back a grimace at the light that pierced through his eyes and stabbed through his brain. He hated this.

Still.

He managed to get past his hatred in the world and everything in it and look up at Superman, he seemed concerned, but also relieved for whatever reason. 

“Hi.” He managed to rasp out, going for a smile that he knew came out as a grimace. The Kryptonian seemed mildly caught off guard. “Help me up.” He requested, holding his hand out, the man seemed to break out of his stupor before quickly taking his hand. Billy didn't know whether he liked it or not that Clark had the audacity to treat him so gently as he helped him sit up. As if he were dealing with glass.

But he felt like shit, so he chose to ignore it. Since he was sure he might look like shit right now anyways, and Clark has always been the kind of guy who treats like glass anyone who's badly hurt. Billy saw him fuss over Batman once because the guy had several broken ribs and was still Ninja fighting thugs like there was no tomorrow.

Sitting up did make him feel a bit better, so did the heavenly glass of water Superman offered him, and Christ he would have killed for a second glass.

But he knew better than to do that, he didn't feel like throwing up right now, it was bad enough Flash had seen him throw up, and cry, talk about humiliating. It was bad enough they had seen him like this, weak, like a child that got easily subdued. He hated it. Hated the sole idea of them thinking him unable to protect himself. It was one of the reasons why he never told them, afraid of losing any respect they might have had for him whatsoever.

Granted, the League didn't treat the Teen Titans or Young Justice like useless kids who couldn't handle themselves. There was respect and trust there. But there was still a very clear difference on how they were treated versus how adult members were treated. 

Thavma didn't want to be treated like them. He had busted his ass to be seen as their equal, even before the League, he had done the impossible to get the respect and trust from others, the Presence, the Endless, the Watcher, He Who Remains, the gods from the other pantheons, the magic community and even gods from his own pantheon.

He had busted his ass to show everyone he was worthy of the responsibility he was given when first came into existence. That just because he was an immortal child, it didn't mean he couldn't be trusted to keep things running. He could handle his job.

He didn't need the League nor anyone for that matter reducing him to nothing but his age. In any case he was older than all of them put together. Older than half of the multiverse and certainly old enough to have more experience than all the superhero community of this world put together.

He didn't know how to feel when the others appeared though. All looking relieved, but something about their eyes irked at him. He didn't know what.

But he hated it.

“How are you feeling?” Diana asked, he shrugged.

“I have had worse.” It was true, he's had worse. Not physically.

But wounds healed, as so would these ones.

Not even this could compare to any of the past ones. It was just another addition to the list of things that he would never be able to forget but wouldn't think about much. Because if he didn't think about them, it didn't happen. and if he thought it for long enough, it could almost become true.

Just like he did in the past.

When Teth, who he had seen as an uncle, bound him and forced him to kill those who took his family from him, when he was forced to keep killing anyone who would stand in his way, while he kept using Hurut as a reminder of what the world had taken from him . When the gods were forced to strip his magic away and seal him away until Teth Adam died and the spell was broken…

That had been worse than this, to have his magic shredded and feel like his insides were hemorrhaging, to be suspended in nothing but unending darkness with the whispers of the gods promising an eventual freedom that seemed to never come.

To have to end an entire species because of a woman who had gone insane with jealousy. To remember the screams, the blood and the wails. As he cursed them to become demons of the deep sea who trapped those who came within the perimeters of their once home. That had been worse than this.

And so had being subjected to the torture Lex Luthor from that other world had put him under, to feel the worms moving inside his brain, to be forced to hurt his friends and become nothing but a puppet. To watch as a war between humans and powered people destroyed everyone. Or to kill everyone in a battlefield, regardless of the sides. Just blow them all away with a lightning that eradicated all life in kilometers.

What he had gone through had not been pleasant, but it wasn't the worst thing to happen. And he was sure it wouldn't be the last. He wasn't that naive.

But the League didn't know that. And he did feel a bit bad as he looked at their horrified faces.

“I'm fine.” He ended up conceding, hoping to give them some comfort in that. They didn't look any better. “Were any of them alive when you found me?”

“What?”

“The guy and the woman who captured me. Were they alive? Or like, there at all?” He asked, he wanted to know how had the man been able to use magic, all the people he knew who were able to act as magic sources when he was out of the equation would have never allowed that. Not even Heka and Tezcatlipoca who could care less about what happened to him or what mess humans chose to throw around.

And he also wanted to know who the woman had been, he could have sworn her voice had been familiar.

"We got the man, his name is Augustus Harkness, the woman you refer to might have been his wife, Elizabeth Harkness, we could not find her, and he refuses to speak." Batman informed, choosing his words with care, but also giving him the important information, Bruce knew how irritating it could be to have people treating you like glass and hiding things from you because 'maybe you can't handle it'.

That never turned out well.

He had found with time, that deep down, all of those people who suffered at the hands of others, felt a whole lot more grounded and in control if they knew where exactly their attacker was and who it was. 

He didn't miss the Captain's frown, recognition flashing in his face.

"You recognize the names?" He asked.

"Something like that. You said his wife was nowhere to be found?"

"No."

Billy hummed, he tried tracing through magic, but he wasn't particularly on his best form right now, so he didn't got anything, but he doesn't need to to get an idea of what might have been of Elizabeth.

There's a reason he never calls for help from magic beasts, only if he really can't see another way around it. Magic beasts have one single setting when influenced with his magic, when he asks for help, he is given their help.

Yes.

But they give it completely brutal, violent and downright evil. Anyone who they believe has any part in having made him ask for help at all ends up mutilated, devoured or just mentally scarred. It's as if they take sheer joy in causing as much damage to whoever had wronged him. 

He saw unicorns trample and completely eviscerate an entire village after they tried to burn him on the stake when he was first starting to get a hang of his powers. They had been throwing rocks at him and he had cried out.

And out of nowhere, a herd of unicorns had exploded from the forest and destroyed the entire village regardless of his shouts at them to stop. But the unicorns hadn't cared to listen, they had slaughtered everyone, children, elderly, anyone and everyone, whether innocent or guilty. All of them, dead.

He also watched a dragon devour the brother of a girl who he had befriended, when she found out he could do magic, she had taken him hiking, just to push him off the top. The scream had been a reflex, but it had been enough to get a nearby dragon tearing her arm off and devouring her brother right infront of her.

He knew, that magic beasts weren't stupid, animal looking or not, they were highly intelligent and knew what to do to hurt people in the worst ways possible.  

Point was.

He didn't like calling them, because people always ended up dead or awfully hurt when he did. But he had been desperate, afraid, and just wishing for it all to end. The woman had hurt him, she had done something he never even entertained someone would do to him. Cut his skin off. And they had also cut him off from everything.

But now that he was more aware and awake… he hadn't wanted her to get whatever end she had. Nor for the man, Augustus, to have been subjected to watching it. He wasn't a monster, he might have been mad, might still be so.

But he was no killer. Nor did he relinquish on torture.

If he seeked revenge, it was less brutal and more methodical, he didn't like seeking revenge through fists. No. He liked seeking revenge through words. 

Because as several people had told him, words cut deeper than knives. And that's what he wanted, he wanted to tear Augustus Harkness apart, through words. He wanted the man to beg for the sweet release of death because he could no longer bear to listen to him. He's learnt to be sharp with his words, he had dozens of friends scattered throughout the multiverse whose specialty was to rip people apart by words alone.

And Augustus Harkness would be ripped apart for his transgressions. He hated the Harkness, all those assholes did regardless of their variants was hurt and use others. Just like Agatha had tried with that particular Wanda long before she broke apart and became a dreamwalker, at least she had realized the error of her ways, eventually, after wrecking havoc through another universe and killing people who shouldn't have died.

Point was.

He was no killer.

He now knew Elizabeth had been killed infront of Augustus. But it wasn't enough, he needed to know more, know what to use to break him apart. Show him the consequences of getting on his bad side, he didn't like revenge, but people like him couldn't afford to forgive it all. There were rules, and Augustus Harkness broke them.

"Where is he? Is he here?" He asked at last, their carefully neutral faces didn't deter him. "I want to see him, there's something I would like to see."

"I don't think that's a good idea." Batman refuted, making mini Marvel frown.

"Why? I won't hurt him, that's not how I do things."

"I find that hard to believe." Constantine's words got him a scowl, he didn't budge. If Captain Marvel didn't kill him or took his magic all those times he shut the door of the House of Mysteries on his face or when he set fire to his cape, he doubted he would mean any harm right now.

"Why? Because he kidnapped me, tried to drain me and cut me open? It's not the first time I have been treated like a lab rat nor imprisoned, he ain't special. And I'm sure it won't be the last anyways. I'm not stupid, people like me don't get to live a carefree life, if I were to focus on all the times I have been messed with I wouldn't be where I am now."

Which was protecting people. Still carrying the mantle of the Champion. Guarding and protecting those who couldn't protect themselves.

Yes. He had seen the bad side of humanity, but as Solomon and Calliope had said, life was about the good, and the bad moments. If he got stuck into the bad ones for too long, life became dark. Pointless and filled with nothing but anger and resentment. He had to forgive, not for them, but for himself, so he wouldn't be consumed by it.

He had come to realize that even if things got awful, there would always be light at the end of the tunnel, there would always be a hand to pull him out. Be it from his family or his friends.

Despite what humans had done to him, he had never held it against them all, he had still wanted to learn more about them and just live. This world was the first one he got involved with in a long time, he made friends he could trust and respected, friends who had come to his aid, and instead of hurting him further, had helped him.

He wouldn't give that up just because of one mishap. There was still so much he wanted to learn and see, he didn't want this to ruin it all.

But he didn't expect the League to understand, none of them knew what it was like, to be immortal and have a permanent target on his back for the single fact of existing. It was something one got used to with time, something to learn to live with. He didn't want the bad experiences to define him or ruin how he did or viewed things.

Like Oneiros or Lucifer. One trapped in expecting the worst in people or like everyone was conspiring behind his back. And another one trapped in thinking the world was against him. He didn't want to live a life like that. He wanted to be the one who made people feel safe, to be the hero he wished he had whenever things went wrong. To smile and reassure people everything would be alright.

He wanted to be good. Even when it felt like the world hated him. felt like he was losing hope, he liked looking back at those who were good, to remember why he even began meddling with people.

To help, to save, to protect, to care.

“So, let me see him. I need to know what was the true purpose behind what he did.” He said, he had never met a single person who would be willing to let the world burn just for money, there was always something more. He wanted to know what that ‘more’ was for Harkness. What was so important he had put his own wife's life on the line?

Meanwhile, the League stared at Marvel, unable to speak, to even have a straight thought regarding what he just said. 

I have had worse.

It's what he had said, and that added to what he just said…. It made them feel sick, what did he mean with that? How many times then had he been treated like that for him to disregard it in such a way? 

How could anyone even be okay with knowing they would have to go through something so horrible again at some point? How did he even manage to smile and stay so positive if he has been through God knows what for God knows how many times?

Sadly, the magic users could see how that one might be true. There would always be people who would be narcissistic, arrogant and stupid enough to think they could imprison beings that should never be messed with. But it was still a bit disturbing to know Captain Marvel might have gone through that several times in the past.

“Fine. But you cannot approach the glass, touch it, or anything of the likes.” Batman conceded at last, he could tell Marvel wouldn't drop the subject, he's dealt with teenagers, he knows that it's better to go along with it. Plus, if what he said is true, then it's no use trying to keep him from it.

He might have to speak to Dinah, and the Captain when he was better. Immortal or not Bruce didn't feel comfortable ignoring what he just heard. And the way Marvel had disregarded and played it down… he really would feel a whole lot better if Dinah had a talk with the Captain.

“Fair enough.”

Thavma walked to the holding cells through sheer force of stubbornness and pride. It would be a cold day in hell before he let anyone carry him. He wasn't that weak.

Also.

He didn't trust he wouldn't throw up or cringe at having someone touching him right now, his skin felt uncomfortable, his magic, the sounds, everything about the world felt uncomfortable and wrong. He wanted to go home.

But he needed to do this.

He was surprised he was allowed to go in alone as requested, but he also knew all of the League was watching him like hawks through the cameras. 

Augustus was in the holding cell, sitting on the lone chair and head bowed. Fists tight resting on his lap.

Thavma came to stand right infront of the glass, he stood to his full height, hands clasped behind his back and chin held high, just like Zeus taught him. Stand his ground, never let the enemy know they have hurt him. Never let them see their actions have had any effect on him. He clasped his hands tight, refusing to acknowledge the tremors in them.

He stared at the man, emotions perfectly concealed, he tried to look at his magic, to get a feel of it…

And he managed it.

The rotten and toxic fumes of darkness exuding off of the man were as familiar as they were unexpected. He felt himself tense and it was all his training with Achilles, Athena and Hades what kept him from taking a step back. Never back away. Never show fear.

He knew that magic.

It was dark dimension magic. Forbidden, why? Because using it always meant the user exposing themselves to the influence of the incredibly twisted and equally incredibly powerful beings that lurked there. Most of them destroyers of worlds or demons vile enough only the Rock Of Eternity would be able to hold them.

Maybe.

It was a place not even he would go in.

"You do know the side effects of tapping on that magic you were using before, right?" He spoke out loud, choosing that as his greeting. He knew he chose right when the man snapped up to attention. Also knew he didn't need to do much when he caught sight of the darkness surrounding the man's eyes. Definitely an idiot bound to become a mindless one.

Why did people insist on using magic they didn't understand?

"You!" Augustus shouted, standing up and stalking over to him, he didn't so much as twitch as the man came to huff like a furious bull right infront of him. "This is all your fault!"

"How so?" He asked, voice calm, expression schooled. How was any of this his fault?

"You killed my wife!"

Ah, that one.

He did feel bad, but he did not feel guilt. Because it was not him who killed her or put her in that situation. And he wouldn't let anyone pin that blame on him. He had enough deaths behind him to have people throwing more at him. He didn't kill her. He hadn't wanted her to die.

But he forced his hand. He had no other options left.

"No, I did not. You did. I didn't wish to call them, for I know how vile they can be. But you left me no other choice. Had it been only me who was being affected by your actions, I could have waited it out, but it wasn't just me. You were also hurting innocent people, do you even know the damage you have done?"

"I do not care!" Harkness snarled, fist hitting the wall, Thavma didn't flinch, but anger did burst at the man's words, how dare he be so nonchalant about the damage he caused and the lives he took?  

And so he moved, the heat in his chest engulfing him as his open palm hit the glass, sending electricity crackling all over the cell, forcing the man to stumble back as lightning hands shot from the ground and grabbed him, slamming him on the floor hard enough to crack the marble. 

"You are such a hypocrite!" Harkness spoke through the pain, anger blazing in his gaze. Hatred. He was used to that one, but it still stung, it would never not sting to have people look at him with those eyes. "You claim to care about people. But why do you let them die then? Your blood can cure any and every disease that there is. And you do nothing. You just let everyone suffer and die . Every single day dozens of people die, people who don't deserve to die. Kids who are just starting to live. You let them all die."

Billy didn't answer, but he did release Harkness. His words weren't new, he had heard that before, and while he knew that he didn't owe people anything, it would never not make him feel like shit when confronted by it so directly. 

He did do that once, a long, long time ago, when he first found out his blood could do that, and it had been horrible, he had wanted to help people, but they never stopped coming, they never stopped asking for more, always more, and more. It came to a point where he just couldn't do it. Because there was always someone who was sick, always someone needing his help, always taking his blood. 

He remembers the bruises on his skin, how he couldn't even walk right. And then, one day, he just swatted the needles away and refused to let anyone take his blood ever again.

Freddy and Mary had convinced him to not feel guilty. That it was okay. 

He did use his blood to heal people, just if he felt like it. It was his blood, he didn't owe anything to anyone. Last he had used it, it had been to heal Diana when they were kids and their sparring match got out of hand. There had been so much blood panic had won over his displeasure of bleeding. All he had wanted was to stop the blood and make her okay.

And still, the man's words…

Something about them got his attention, his expression…

"You have a sick child." It's not a question, but a statement of fact. He knows he is right when Augustus jumps to his feet, alert and hateful. He doesn't react to it, this new knowledge… it's unexpected, and new, no one has ever summoned him based on something so… innocent.

All those in the past had seeked destruction and death.

Augustus Harkness apparently had seeked to heal his child. And Billy has never had to deal with something like this. He knew, and he's also seen how far a parent could go for their child. But this…

"Why didn't you just ask me? Had you asked me, I would have helped you." He told, sincere. Granted, he would have first made sure of several things, and also corroborated with Death for several reasons too. And if he was given the green light he would have healed the child.

Healing people from death left and right was also capable of bringing serious consequences to the balance of things. He had learnt that the hard way. Something about sometimes needing to learn things for yourself.

Point is, it wasn't just about him not wanting to give his blood. There were other reasons at stake.

"You expect me to believe that?"

"I don't expect you nor anyone for that matter to understand. But I cannot go around healing people at random, there are rules. But I do see if I can heal those who request it. Something you didn't do, and now your wife is dead, and you are to succumb to a lifetime of suffering for your own idiocy, your child has been left without their parents. And it's all your fault, not mine."

Alright, he might have been a bit too harsh with that one, but he didn't care. Someone needed to tell this asshole the truth on how much he messed up and how he has no one to blame but himself for it. Because now his child has lost their parents. And he knows how awful that is.

I mean, he has Hecate, and he has Zeus, but he also had human parents. C.C. and Marylin Batson, and Víctor and Rosa Vasquez. It had broken his heart to lose them, even now, it still hurts, and it would never stop hurting. 

He knows his words hit something in Harkness, for he seems for the first time to actually become aware of it, of how he just condemned his child.

All anger and hatred disappear from his face as he all but lunges towards the glass, and he… kneels. No. He all but throws himself at the ground, hands held up in a begging fashion and head on the floor.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, please. You have to help her. You can do whatever you wish to me, but please save her, she is only five, she deserves to have a life, she deserves to grow, to get to live and see the world. I will give you anything you want. I will do anything you want. But please, I beg of you, save her."

Harkness' voice broke at the end, trembling, begging, pleading for his daughter's life. It made Billy's chest twist, shoulders growing lax as he looked down at the man. Because he could see it now, that despite what he did, he did it in desperation, for his daughter.

And while it didn't change what he did. It did make Thavma understand better the purpose of the why.

A father who would let the world burn for his daughter. 

He turned around, and with that last thought, he left the holding cells. Ignoring the man's cries and pleas.

~

The League watched the Captain through the monitors. Heard the man blame him. Were ready to intervene when the man attacked and Marvel retaliated, but they held back, maybe because somewhere inside them chose to give that much to him . And it's not as if he did much, just immobilized the man.

They also heard the why Augustus Harkness had been draining him.

Healing blood.

And while the man's words can be understood, it's also wrong, because while it would be amazing if no one was to die, it's as the Captain said. There are rules. And death, as sad and terrible as it's, it's a natural thing that cannot be changed or eliminated. A world without death… overpopulation and famine were just two of the many things inability to die would bring into the world.

Still, his harsh words to the man are unexpected, unfamiliar. The League has never heard him be so cruel to someone, to all villains he spoke to, he was still kind even when being shot. Though considering what Harkness did to him… but it's still off putting to hear him speak so detached and cruel.

It's even more disconcerting when the man begs, when he seems to break down under the Captain's words and just begs for his child's life. And understanding dawns on them as they realize why had Elizabeth and Augustus Harkness done this . 

It had been to save their child. And while some in the League can understand and empathize with him on that, it doesn't mean it makes what he did any less horrible, it still gives no excuse to what he did, nothing excused kidnapping someone and torturing them , because there were so many ways in which he could have done this. Marvel himself said so, he could have asked. But he didn't.

And now his child had lost both her parents.

Captain Marvel doesn't answer to the man's pleas, he just walks out. Expression neutral, as the door closes behind him, he leans against the door, he looks impossibly worse than before.

Diana is infront of him in less than a second, grabbing his arms to keep him from falling. 

"Are you-"

"You can't take him to prison." He cut off, Diana frowned in confusion.

"Where else would he go?" Superman questioned, voicing the confusion in the room.

"He's used magic from the dark dimension." The magic users sucked in a sharp breath at that.

"What's that?"

"It's magic that comes, not from the Rock, nor a 'clean' source, but from a dimension that harbors nothing but dark magic, most of the time granted by devourers of worlds or seriously off the line demons. If you don't know how to use it, it consumes you, turns you into a mindless monster whose sole purpose is to serve the dark dimension. The damage is already done, you can't help him."

Billy really feels like he is grasping at straws from reality right now. His heart is racing and breathing is becoming harder, he was sure that if Diana wasn't holding him, he might have crumbled to the ground already. He really shouldn't have used magic. But it had pissed him off so much to hear how nonchalant Harkness had been towards those he hurt. All lives mattered.

Still.

He needed to get this out if he wanted the League to be safe, and others, Harkness could not be put with people. He threw a look at Dr. Fate, the one he trusted to be able to get rid of Harkness safely while also staying safe himself.

"When his eyes turn red, you must send him to the dark dimension. He cannot stay." It wasn't a request, it was an order. And he really, seriously hated giving orders. But he didn't want them to hesitate, he didn't want Harkness escaping and becoming a mindless one wreaking havoc through the city, they wouldn't be able to stop him and Billy was in no condition to fight.

Ariel could fight him, but she could not open a portal to the dark dimension. And Hecate might kill him. He didn't want him to die, He's never wished death upon anyone, not really, but Hecate wouldn't care.

"Understood." Dr. Fate said, unbothered, he knew the Captain was right, a mindless one could not be allowed to break free, it would bring so much chaos. Seriously, what had this man even been thinking? Anyone with half a brain in the magic community knew that you just didn't so much as considered, ever touching or even stepping into the dark dimension .

And this man went and shoved his hands into it and used its magic. There were no excuses to do something so reckless and irresponsible. 

"We should get you back to the medbay." Diana said, noticing how much the Captain had begun swaying.

"That won't be necessary." The sudden voice caught several off guard, making the League acquire defensive stances.

Though the magic users and Diana halted upon recognizing who it was.

A stunning woman stood there, with dark hair and pale skin, piercing purple eyes, and a green aura seemed to almost shine off of her, she was dressed in white robes with ornate silver designs. Two black hounds that looked like dogs pulled out from hell stood at each side of her.

"It's fine." Diana is quick to inform the rest who still seemed alert. "This is Hecate, she's…"

"My mother." Billy finished painfully, he would have paid good money for it to have been Hercules, Hermes or just about anyone else here right now.  

He stood his case when Hecate just came over to him and picked him up with no care whatsoever about his attempt to draw close to Diana in hopes to escape the embarrassing fact that his mother wanted to pick him up infront of the League. Sometimes he really couldn't help but think Hecate and Zeus created his body as that of a child just so they could forever be able to pick him up.

He glared at her with the utmost distaste as she picked him up. But of course Hecate didn't paid him mind, and he guessed he could forgive it, since her magic never failed to make him feel like everything about the world was fine, like maybe not all sucked.

"He will fare better at the Rock Of Eternity, he must heal so your world can heal." Hecate told as a statement of fact, she threw a look at the door that led to the holding cells, and Billy squeezed her shoulder.

"Leave him alone. He's suffered enough, and he will live on eternal suffering anyways. To me, his punishment has been served already." He said to her through their mental link. Hecate didn't seem pleased, but she still nodded.

She didn't like his decision, but she still respected it. She turned back to the League.

"You have my gratitude, for what you have done for him." Hecate said solemnly. Now Billy did feel embarrassed.

"We didn't do anything he wouldn't have done for any of us or anyone for that matter." Hal's words were so genuine and honest Billy almost cried.

Almost.

Because they all looked so honest, so serious. It made a warm fuzzy feeling take over his chest. 

Maybe opening up to them and finally letting them in wouldn't be so bad.

And with that last thought, Hecate teleported them out of the Watchtower.

Chapter Text

It's been over two months since the world was turned upside down. Two months since the Justice League learnt the truth behind Captain Marvel. Two months since Captain Marvel was last seen.

Spending time at the Rock had been… not so bad. He wasn't allowed to leave until his magic settled back and all injuries were gone, yeah, but he did got to hang out with some of his siblings, play video games, eat snacks, also got to taste the divine food of Demeter and Dionysus, also got over a dozen snacks, desserts and gifts sent to him by a bunch of other Gods from his and other pantheons. Sometimes being known as the 'baby' anchor had its advantages.

And thanks to a blanket of stardust Oneiros sent him he had had the best sleep of his life. Lucifer from Earth-666 also appeared and threw him with a friend of his he claimed to be amazing at helping people. Which rude. But also appreciated.

Now he was finally completely healed and feeling a bit better, hell, he felt like he could fist fight God as Billy Batson and win. 

The return of Captain Marvel had gotten a lot of cheering and joy from people, more than he had expected after having disappeared on them when they most needed him. He had inspected Fawcett City, yeah, he knew the magic had restored everything back to its original state, but he had still wanted to be sure before finally going to Central City. There was something he needed to do.

He had asked Oneiros to help him locate the child of Harkness, since he would be able to find her regardless of anything. With that of knowing where everyone was, which would always seriously give him the creeps.

Still.

He did find her.

Victoria Bressler.

She had her mother's maiden name. Age 5.

She had lung cancer. He had traced her future, the paths she might take, had also spoken with Death, Destiny, the Presence and the Fates.

As it turns out, he could heal her. 

She was in a kid's hospital. As he stood at the roof of the building across, he could see her sleeping, her skin much too pale, she was hugging… she was hugging a Captain Marvel plushie. And that… it made his throat close, guilt gnawing at him. 

"You owe them nothing. No matter how hard it's, no matter how much it hurts. You are not obliged to give them anything." Atlas' voice spoke up, stating a fact, and while Thavma knew he was right, it didn't feel any less worse. Like he was truly a hypocrite for not doing more.

"You do more than enough. You have given them more than enough. You always give them more than enough." Zeus' stated, making him frown.

"Stay out of my thoughts." He muttered before dropping off the roof, landing near a park, he chose nighttime to attract less attention to himself, he knew Flash wouldn't mind him dropping by, but he really didn't want to see him nor anyone in the League just yet.

He went over to a patch of grass and crouched on the ground, pulling out a dagger from his pocket dimension.

"Where did you get that dagger?!" Came the six scandalized voices, making him wince. And still, he smirked.

"Loki gave it to me." 

"That little-!"

Billy tuned the gods' voices out before giving his finger a little nick, as the drops of golden blood fell on the grass, he made the magic from the earth embrace it, twisting it and molding it into what he desired it to be. His blood might heal but only he could control what flowers with what capabilities sprouted. If the blood was consumed raw…

Well, let's say the hanahaki disease wasn't so fictional in some universes, was also very disturbing to witness and much more explosive than a little cough.

He wondered if Harkness got to witness it considering he said he tested it. Also felt bad for whoever fell victim to that. No one deserved such horripilant death.

His attention came back to the present as he watched a delicate jasmine flower emerge from the ground, blooming right infront of him, its petals shining a bright metallic, orange color, petals still as soft as those of all flowers. He was careful as he dug it out, placing it in a bedazzled black and purple pot with a panther in the middle.

Mental note, never let King Kid, Toussaint and Darla inside his pocket dimension again. 

He flew over to the hospital, teleported himself inside Victoria's room and placed the pot on the little desk near the bed where lots of drawings were scattered. Lots of glitter and stickers also covered the desk, he felt guilt twist inside him as he caught sight of a drawing of what could be nothing but her and her parents. All smiling on a sunny beach and holding hands.

He glanced at her, still sleeping, so small, hugging the Captain Marvel plushie… she almost reminded him of Darla, still much too young and innocent, with such a long life ahead of her … but this was all he could do for her, let her grow as her parents would have wanted. 

The flower would heal her, not immediately, it would do so slowly so as to not attract attention, but it would heal her. As long as she had the flower with her, her body would begin healing, her energy would return. She would get to grow and live a long life just like her parents wished.

One last look at her, and he was gone.

~

It's been two months since the League last saw Captain Marvel, they had kept an eye out for Fawcett City, knowing he might need time to heal. None of them was sure how long that might take, but they didn't mind. He could take all the time he needed. God knows he deserved it.

And still, none of them expected him to appear out of nowhere at the Watchtower, as Captain Marvel and looking like the picture of health, all smiles and not a single hair out of place. And they had no idea whether to find that disturbing or admirable. 

"You are back." Hal blurted out as Marvel went over to his chair, he seemed to be in high spirits, and Hal felt very compelled to call Dinah and lock her with the Captain in a room. Because how the hell was he so happy and normal? That couldn't be normal, like, fucking at all.

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I?”

“Shouldn't you like, I don't know, take more time?” Zatanna suggested, she didn't want to overstep, but Champion or not, Marvel was still her friend, and she didn't think he should be back so soon. Not after what he went through, regardless of what he said, he should take more time. A vacation even.

“More time? What for? I'm fine, I have healed and everyone was driving me crazy anyways.” He also ran out of video games and books. And stabbing Apollo was becoming quite compelling, with his audacity to keep morphing his clothes into animal onesies and switching the colors of everything.

Billy was a pacifist. He did not kill.

But he wasn't beyond maiming.

And he didn't think Zeus would appreciate Thavma maiming Apollo, maiming went against the rules. He could stab him though, but he didn't want to stab him, Apollo's blood was so bright it could become flat out light that gave migraines to whoever made him bleed. So not fair. Billy wanted to blind people and give them migraines if they stabbed him.

Stupid god of the sun and his stupid bright blood.

“You sure you are alright? It's okay if you want to take more time, we understand that what happened-”

“I'm fine. ” He cut off Flash, this before sighing. “I know you are worried, and I appreciate it, but I'm alright, I promise, I told you before. It's not the first time, and I have learnt that it's better to just move on rather than get stuck on the bad things. I’m immortal, I don't want to let the bad experiences affect what I do or how I choose to live. I have seen what that does to people, I don't want to be on that train.”

He's seen it in how Oneiros could never sit with his back to a door or anyone for that matter anymore. He hated small places same as he didn't trust many humans at all. Billy could probably count with one hand the amount of humans he didn't walk as stiff as a board around. He's also seen it in how Loki did not like people sneaking up on him or people mentioning anything related to what he had done in Manhattan while under the mad titan's control. 

Or how Lucifer hid his pain and sadness behind alcohol and an overconfident persona. Because if he didn't, he might just break.

Thavma didn't want to live like that. To be afraid, to not be able to trust even his shadow, to let the pain fester until he doesn't remember how to truly be happy. To be eternal and never let go of what hurt you, to let it fester and affect your life… it was just a recipe for an eternity of many bitter emotions. 

He liked his friends, and he respected their boundaries. However they chose to live their lives, he didn't judge them, he knew how eternity could be a bitch. But he didn't want to live like them.

"So just let's forget about it and carry on, I have already been pestered enough by others because of it. And I would really like it if you were to not be on their side too and just act as you would normally. Yes?" He wanted to at least have the League on his side, for them to not treat him like glass, give him awkward looks or ask him if he is sure he doesn't want them to gut Augustus Harkness. 

"We understand, we do, really, but we would feel a whole lot better if you were to at the very most speak with Dinah, just once at least, please?" Superman requested, Billy wanted to protest against it, he spoke to Lucifer's Linda, he spoke with Death, with Persephone, with Calliope, with Ariel and just about any of the aspiring therapists or extremely positive people across the multiverse who he knew.

He didn't need another talk.

But he could tell the League was worried, and he knew it must have been a bit traumatizing to see him as they did, just because it was normal to him, it didn't mean it was normal to them. Thus, he sighed in defeat.

"Alright." He ended up conceding, he guessed he could see what Dinah's insight on it all could be. A human perspective was always welcomed, Linda's assessment had been enlightening, so had Bruce's, even if he kept insisting he wasn't that sort of doctor, but Peter said he was great at giving advice so Billy had taken it , maybe Dinah's would be too.

A little bit of silence reigned for a moment.

And then.

"Why were you in Central City last night?" Flash's question wasn't accusing nor suspicious, just curious if not a little confused, Barry wasn't particularly against other heroes in his city, but he usually asked to be told about it so he could go say hi or pester them.

Billy didn't feel surprised at him having found out, he hadn't been particularly subtle, maybe someone saw him and spread the word. 

"I went to see Augustus Harkness' daughter." He realized how ominous that sounded and was quick to elaborate. "He didn't lie, she was sick, lung cancer, so I gave her something to help her heal." 

He wasn't quite sure what to make of their expressions, surprise, shock, confusion. Probably wondering why did he heal the child of his torturer. But he didn't mind, to him, she was nothing but an innocent child. He's never been one to resent people based solely on who they were related to.

"How did you find her? We could not find her." Batman asked, Barbara and Tim had tried everything and anything to find the child, to see what she was sick with, if maybe Wayne Enterprises could help. But they found nothing.

So how did Marvel find her?

"I have a friend who is amazing at finding people, he told me where to find her. You could not find her because she is using her mother's maiden name. Her name's Victoria Bressler. She should be completely fine in about a week." He informed. He was quite proud of his skill at healing.

"Why did you help her? I thought you said you couldn't just go healing people at random, and considering whose daughter she is…" Hawkwoman didn't want to sound like a jerk, but she couldn't be the only one wondering why the hell would he heal the kid of the people who tortured him.

Marvel gave her a funny look.

"She has done nothing to me, she deserves none of what I might feel towards her parents. And it's as Harkness said, she is a child. She deserves to grow, I asked around and I watched. Healing her would not cause significant damage or changes."

She could be saved. It was not fair to all those other children and people, no life was more important than others. But he could not heal them, in the past, he healed without a care for the consequences.

When he learnt about them, he stopped healing altogether, one of the many reasons he didn't heal people. The sick feeling at having to bleed didn't compare to the horrible feeling it left behind to have to decide who can be healed and who can't. It had made him feel like a monster, a prick who sees no worth in life and doesn't respect people's lives.

Because it's a nauseating feeling, to know who can be healed and who can't. It's not fair at all that some people get to live and others don't based solely on how their actions will affect the course of time.

So he didn't heal anyone.

But Victoria… her parents risked it all for her, died for her. It was not fair. 

So he healed her.

"It's not true what he said though." He found himself saying, he didn't like the idea of the League thinking like Harkness, that he might be a hypocrite. "I don't heal people because there are rules. Yes. There are other reasons, sure."

Like feeling like screaming and crying when needles came anywhere near his skin.

But irrelevant. 

"But I also don't do it because I would have to ask whether they can or can't be healed. It's not a pleasant feeling to know who's life seems to be more important than others. It feels disrespectful, so I don't heal people, that way I don't know who can and cannot be healed."

That way everyone's lives are equally important and valuable. Sometimes, the universe sucked.

"It's fine. You don't have to explain yourself to us." J'onn assured, he could understand his reasoning. It sounded twisted, but he did guess it did make sense. Death could not be stopped, it was the natural order of things. No matter how incredibly unfair and painful it could be.

He didn't want to imagine the kind of weight Marvel might have to carry with. The fact that he still healed that child was impressive though. His reasoning behind doing so…

J'onn had to admit it made respect bloom in him for the man.

"I know, but I wanted to." Because Billy really doesn't want the League to think ill of him. 

Also.

There was something he had been thinking about these past months, something he had been entertaining, I mean, they already saw his kid form, and he thanked the stars they weren't hyperfocusing on that detail and weren't being weird about it like treating him like a kid or something equally uncomfortable. 

Point was.

He wanted to do this, even if Hecate and the others hadn't seemed pleased with his decision. 

Thus, he spoke.

"I want to tell you my names."

He cringed as Zatanna choked on the water she had been drinking. He definitely didn't bite back a smirk at the water running down her nose. Nor at the perplexed looks all around the table, particularly from those who knew about magic and understood the actual weight of the statement he just made.

For a being that could be summoned and bound, to give their name was the ultimate show of trust. And he trusted them wholeheartedly. 

"Not that I'm not curious. But where did that come from?" Aquaman asked, sounding a bit baffled, which totally understandable, Marvel has never truly told anyone anything about himself. Which made sense after learning what he has to deal with.

So why his name? Names?

"I just feel like it. You already saw me bleeding all over the place and in my… other form. You can know my names." He told, he threw a dirty look at the magic users. "Don't summon me though, I will hurt you if you do." He didn't say that with true heat, he just didn't generally like being summoned, no creature did, who the hell liked being torn away from whatever they were doing just to be thrown in a circle without their powers?

That was just rude.

Also.

He liked watching Constantine clutch what was left of his soul. It was funny.

"Wouldn't dream of it." Constantine spoke, clearing his throat. Granted, he knew Marvel didn't mean it, but he could smell the actual hidden threat there, he was playing, but he was also not. Those eyes said it all.

The Captain smirked at his words, and just like that the danger disappeared from his gaze.

"I have a lot of names, but I only care about two. My birth name, and my human name."

Thavma grinned as he watched the League hold their breath. Expectant. Even Batman seemed to almost be leaning over his chair in expectation.

He wished he had a camera to take a picture of their faces.

"The human name I was given is Billy, my birth name is Thavma, that one I'm only giving it to you so you may know it, but I would prefer it if you were to not use it." He didn't feel like having people overhearing it. 

Oh.

And he also remembered something.

Diana already knew that name.

It's the name he gave her when he first met her in Themyscira, when they would do horse races, spar, sneak in the training grounds when no one was using them and chase the peacocks in the forest. He had missed her dearly when he had to go.

Had been thrilled when he got invited to the Justice League. Totally didn't plan it out at all. But he had wanted to be with his friend again, his sister.

He watched Diana go through several stages of denial, confusion and then acceptance. She settled on giving him a look. He was so not looking forward to that conversation.

But that didn't change things at all. He didn't regret this at all.

To finally be able to belong somewhere after so long. To not be afraid of being found out. To not have to walk on eggshells around the League or feel like he didn't truly belong.

Finally, he was free.