AN: I'm really sorry for the very late upload and the downer beginning… I just wanted a scene of J'onn being confused about silly human traditions and it just… morphed into this…

Chapter 18: Demons and Terror

J'onn stared at the viewing bay of the Watchtower. After his first time visiting Earth for personal reasons (read as running away from women gossiping about one's sex life), he would occasionally make more visits to Earth. He found the urban areas distasteful but convenient in purchasing what was desired (i.e. Oreos). On his latest visit though, he was perplexed when he saw families decorate their homes with cotton or synthetic strands that resemble the protein fibers usually made by small air-breathing arthropods, the emptied husks of large vegetable with orange skin, fake stones that resembled those erected in memory of the dead, fake human skeletons and so on. Some children were even wearing the guises of popular fictional characters, mythological creatures and even versions of his and his teammates' costumes.

He had shaken his head at the odd decorations and costumes, deciding that humans were a separate race with their own traditions, silly as they may be, before deciding to return to the Watchtower… only to see much of the same decorating the viewing bay and even several life-sized replicas of monsters and creatures. It didn't take a detective to know exactly who was responsible for the odd décor. The Martian made his way to Megami's quarters, knowing that she would entertain his questions about human culture.

He made sure to knock though since he'd rather not walk in on her making out or more with Flash… again.

"Come in~" Megami said through the door. Thankfully, she was not in a state of undress. Instead, she seemed to be working on several dozen costumes clearly made with children in mind. Some were of fancy yet… cute dresses for girls, more masculine costumes geared towards boys, mythical creatures, popular icons and so on. Most, however, were of members of the Justice League; some of which were even of his own appearance. "Hey, J'onn. I was just finishing up some Halloween costumes. Kosshi and I figured we could use the holiday to capitalize on the League's popularity and supplement the budget for the Watchtower's upkeep. What do you think of the ones based on the Martian Manhunter?"

"They are… " He didn't really know what to say about them. Majority of the costume was the exact shade of green as his skin and had the same red belt straps and blue shorts he wore. A blue cape and matching boots completed the look. There were even lines stitched into the fabric to resemble the definition of his muscles in his now regular form but it was the… hood that surprised him. If pulled down, it would show his prominent brow and dark-rimmed and solid amber eyes. The replica was eerily accurate.

In fact, all of their suits seemed to have been mass-produced and shrunken down to fit much smaller bodies. They were far better than the ones he had seen on Earth. "…better than some of the ones I've seen on Earth," he continued.

His comment seemed to have appeased Megami since she gave him a blinding smile. "Thanks! You wouldn't believe how crappy I was at this when I first started sewing. I mean, I have the memories of the people from my dimension who could sew insanely well but it doesn't mean that I have the ability to actually do it myself; I had the technical knowledge but muscle memory is a different thing. Pretty sure I pricked my finger more than enough times to get tetanus if it wasn't for my healing factor." She finished up one of the costumes and packed her sewing kit. "With all the craziness going on, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to finish all the alterations that were needed even with my clones; Halloween is only a few days away, after all. Anyway, costume opinions aside, is there anything I can help you with?"

"What is… Halloween?" he asked tentatively.

Megami smiled. Unlike her usual smiles though, this one held sadness rather than cheer or mischief. "Do you want the long answer or the short one?" It was sharp but quickly repressed, leaving the Martian almost dizzy at the sudden change.

A longer answer could wait another day or so… Preferably after this… Halloween was over.

"Halloween is an informal holiday celebrated at the end of October," Megami explained. "Nowadays, it's just a fun day to spend with family and friends. It has a few everlasting traditions, mainly dressing up in costumes, getting candy, pranks and enjoying ghost stories and other things. Most of it is geared towards little kids and adults get into it to encourage them to be social and creative by decorating their place with spooky decorations and putting on costumes themselves or even just to have their own fun. I love it. I figured we can have some fun ourselves and I really want to see if Koumori-san will let me keep the decorations up for the holiday or at least let me have a horror movie marathon here on the day."

J'onn nodded, content with what he was told. He wondered if his wife and children would have enjoyed Halloween.

He turned to leave but was stopped. "Oh, and J'onn…" He turned once again, only to see Megami had her back turned to him. She was straightening a set of army fatigues, speaking as if she was millions of miles away. Even with her emotions firmly sealed behind her formidable mental barriers, J'onn didn't need to be an empath to sense the nostalgia, sadness and grief. "People believe that Halloween is a time when the barrier between the living and the dead is thinnest and that the spirits of the dearly departed are able to revisit the living for a night… And sometimes… sometimes… it does happen… if you're lucky…"

'Or if you're not…' The sentiment hung in the air like a bittersweet blanket. He left his friend in silence, knowing enough to let her grieve in private. Maybe her mortal family's spirits visited her once… Maybe the incident reminded her that they were no longer with her or that she couldn't join them… Maybe there were no such things as visiting spirits… Whatever the case, he would have to insist that any movie marathons would not include ghost movies.

For his sake as well as hers.

Bad news: Batman said she had to take down the decorations she put up in the Watchtower. The damn killjoy.

Good news: he let her have her horror movie marathon since the Watchtower was partly hers (and because it took up much less space in the viewing bay) and he agreed to, at least, consider the idea of incorporating fūinjutsu into the Watchtower's security system.

Worse news: an old friend/vitriolic acquaintance contacted her and said that something 'curious' was happening. Considering he was a knight from Arthurian times, world-famous occultist and demon host, something curious was his posh British stiff-upper-lip way of saying magical shit was about to hit the fan.

It also didn't help that she had a bad feeling in her gut that steadily got worse when she found out what the 'curious' situation Jason Blood was concerned about. She had never been one to ignore her instincts and she wasn't about to start now.

She met said friend outside the Antiquarian. When they entered, another friend was already in the midst of investigating the scene. "Batman, fancy meeting you at a Gotham-based antique book shop that specializes in the medieval era." Batman merely glared at her. "Relax, Koumori-san. I'm not here to trespass on your turf; our mutual friend, Jason, invited me."

Said friend nodded before explaining. "According to legend, the Philosopher's Stone was a gem from the hilt of Excalibur and the true source of the sword's fabled power."

Megami smirked at that. "And according to one Joanne Rowling, it's a red rock about the size of a golf ball that was manufactured by the alchemist, Nicholas Flamel, six hundred years ago and was destroyed to keep it away from a psychotic snake bastard with a major superiority complex." Jason Blood gave her a look normal people usually reserved for those who disemboweled puppies, pissed on gravestones and stole candy from babies. Jason almost never gave anyone that look. Megami liked getting that look from Jason; it made her grin like a loon.

It also might have something to do with Megami having given him a book called Magick Moste Evile and claiming that it was an actual magical tome… and it had taken him a month to figure out that said book was a work briefly mentioned in the Harry Potter franchise. He had sent hexes and curses at her that ended with her puking out slugs for a week. Jason had hated Megami mentioning anything Harry Potter related ever since. Megami still thought it was worth it~

Behind his cowl, Batman rolled his eyes. "I assume neither of you are here to browse," he deadpanned.

"We're friends of the owner," The redhead said, still glaring at the lone female. "I asked Megami to assist me in dealing with his attacker."

"You mean that old man?"

The grin slid off Megami's face in an instant. "He's 32 years old, Batman. He's also an expert of Arthurian lore and a champion at kicking my ass all over a Scrabble board at least twice a month. Jason and I also meet up with him every now and then for information on relics. I've already sent a clone with a few things that would help stabilize his body and, with any luck, get him back to his actual age."

Batman demanded answers despite getting the feeling he wouldn't like them. He was right.

"Morgaine le Fay," Jason explained. "When Camelot fell, Merlin was able to hide the Philosopher's Stone from her. Now, she's returned to track it down again."

"Impossible."

Megami rolled her eyes. "As impossible as Jay here having his body on time share with a yellow-skinned demon with a bad attitude? Or aliens and someone who is technically a physical goddess from a parallel dimension having your back in a fight?"

Jason nodded. "You of all people should know better. Many of the calamities you and your colleagues averted were instigated by seemingly impossible causes. Megami says that she and her paramour ("Can't you just call him my boyfriend?") had a similar conversation with the Green Lantern as well."

Batman was irked by the comments… though it was true that he should revise his idea of what was impossible.

Against his better judgment, he asked why Morgaine wanted it. Before Megami could make another comment that most likely pertained to pop culture, Jason answered, "With it, she can resurrect Camelot and place her son, Mordred, on the throne."

"Basically, she's some unholy combination of Cersei Lannister and Bellatrix Lestrange," Megami commented. "The bitch definitely has Cersei's ambition and love for her brat, Bellatrix's magic, skills and single-minded devotion for someone they believe in and both of their ruthlessness and utter bitchiness combined… Then there's the whole screwing her brother that resulted in a horrible little brat thing and the chasing after a throne thing… Wow… she has more than a few similarities with the bitch queen…"

He noticed that Megami's comments were forced somehow… like she was overcompensating for something… "Pop culture references aside, how close is she to getting this Philosopher's Stone?"

"Too close," Jason replied.

"Up for a road trip, Bats? Castle Branek is lovely this time of year. We get to visit a really old castle and go through an even older guy's things." She saw Jason's lips quirk upward, giving herself another point for cracking that stoic mask of his.

Batman merely sighed. Whatever it was about this latest situation that had Megami on edge, he already knew he hated it.

Morgaine smiled at her willful young son. He expertly sliced through yet another suit of armor. It seemed that though the knights who once owned them long ago as well as the caretakers of the old suits took excellent care of them, they couldn't stand up to a blade enchanted with magic.

Still, an enchanted blade was nothing if the hands that wielded it were not trained in the art of swordsmanship and a king needed to wield a sword to destroy his enemies. She was so proud of her handsome son. Once she had the Philosopher's Stone in hand, Camelot shall rise again and her precious boy would sit on the throne that was his birthright.

She drained the foolish guard that dared raise his voice against Mordred of his youth, restoring her own. 'Oh the inconvenience of youth spells…' she lamented. While the spell she placed on Mordred need not be renewed, casting it on herself as well would have taken far too much effort for her to maintain both. She had to cast another weaker spell that allowed her to instead drain the youth of others. Still, better to leech off of others than to be reduced to a withered old crone. Her son, despite all his talents, still needed his mother, after all and she would be more capable of helping him when she herself was young and able.

Besides, she might not be vain but a woman needed all the weapons she could get, beauty being a sharp yet subtle one.

Morgaine let the guard fall to the floor before carefully inspecting her hands. The wrinkles had smoothened and age spots were banished. All that was left was fair flawless skin, healthy strong nails and the vitality of youth. Already, she was breathing with more ease and feeling lighter and stronger than mere seconds ago. She allowed herself to examine her hands a bit longer just to revel in her renewed youth.

She brought herself back to the task at hand. They were only mere moments from obtaining enough power to resurrect Mordred's rightful kingdom for him to rule. Oh, there were thousands of modern cities for her son to conquer but Camelot had special meaning for both of them. A substitute, no matter how convenient or how much bigger, would pale in comparison.

She would do everything in her power to ensure that her son received his birthright and an old lover was not going to hinder her any longer. As pleasurable and helpful as he had initially been, it was time to do away with the persistent annoyance he was becoming.

Who knows, perhaps she'll be able to capture that crude woman who occasionally aided him. Morgaine had seen her only a few times throughout the centuries and again much more recently on the news yet she had not aged a day. Capturing her would mean a convenient and possibly eternal provider of the youth she needed…

She entered the chamber holding Merlin's ark with barely hidden eagerness. 'At long last, after centuries of searching and hiding… My son will be the king he was meant to be…' She moved the large stone slab that sealed the ark with magic, fairly puzzled on why there was no trace of protective magic around it. Still, it had been centuries and Merlin's power had dwindled with the fall of Camelot and the loss of Arthur else he would have been able to free himself from the enchantment imprisoning him. It wasn't too far of a possibility that both resulted in a failed protection spell.

Once the stone lid was off, the mother and son pair eagerly peered into the ark. Shock and anger filled them both as they discovered it bare of not just the Stone but also any other magical item that once resided there. Rage seethed within her as she cursed Merlin's name.

Perhaps it was just as well that her gem warned her of Jason's eminent arrival. The centuries have been more than a little stressful and ridding herself of her old lover would bring about some relief.

The odd trio entered the castle in a way that two of them almost never bothered with considering what they did in their spare time. Two of them preferred to sneak in and assess the situation before making their presence known. Still, they went through the front door at Jason's insistence, something about respect and his lack of desire to sneak into what was once a stronghold of Camelot like a thief in the night. He refused to listen to their complaints and arguing about it any longer would allow Morgaine to get further ahead of them in their search for the Stone.

So, through the front door they went like a bunch of meddling kids. 'All we need are 70's outfits and a talking Great Dane and we can do a remake of Scooby-Doo,' the kunoichi growled within her head. 'Really, going in without even a hint of a plan other than Don't Let the Bad Guy Get Away is basically what it's all about.' Megami loved the show, really. But the number of times they all almost died or messed up was too much for her sometimes.

She refocused on the task at hand. They walked into the room. (Megami mercilessly cursed Jason for not even letting her make any shadow clones for back up or to scout ahead. As reckless as she can be sometimes, Megami was now a more strategic thinker and she just knew Morgaine reached Merlin's ark before they did and set some nasty surprise for them; it was what she would do.)

The three made quick work of removing the lid of the ark. It was empty but she could tell from the amount of dust that more or less evenly coated the interior that it had been for quite some time. Still, she knew how Jason could be when it came to Morgaine. It was on the opposite spectrum of how she tried to deal with Sasuke's betrayal but the stubbornness was the same.

Instead, Megami quickly scanned the room and took out a pair of kunai. Magic was similar to chakra in that it left a signature that was unique to the user. In the decades she worked with magic users, the kunoichi had learned to sense magic. However, she wasn't good enough to sense the subtleties of several different signatures of different ages in an enclosed space, especially with a strong magic user nearby. It also didn't help that she couldn't use magic herself, making the task even more difficult.

The weapons and suits of armor made her nervous; she would have done something to them if she were in Morgaine's shoes. Just as Jason announced that Morgaine reached the ark first (earning a loud "I told you so!" from Megami), the door slammed closed and the weapons glowed yellow and flew towards them with the intent to skewer them.

She pushed Jason away from the ark, rougher than strictly necessary but she had her reasons. "Morgaine couldn't have reached the castle before us," Megami mocked one of Jason's earlier statements. "The castle is a stronghold of Camelot and the wards wouldn't let a known enemy in so easily. The Stone will be safe until we reach it." Batman dodged and blocked the ensorcelled weapons with other unaffected weapons while Megami concentrated on catching the blades flying at her with her kunai and then burying them deep into stone surfaces to protect her colleagues. Normally, she wouldn't have any problems simply shattering the incoming weapons into a million pieces, historic significance be damned. However, these relics happened to be spelled by Morgaine and she doubted that the broken shards would simply stop attacking them just because she broke the weapon. If anything, it would just make dodging and fighting a lot harder. "I'm going to have a word with whoever it was that though it would be a good idea to have sharp, pointy medieval weapons lying around,' she thought as she caught a morning star and, after a flash of inspiration, sealed it away in an empty storage seal. She would need it to experiment on the effects of chakra against a bewitched item. Hopefully, forcing chakra into something would break the spell and not the morning star… Who knows, maybe doing the same could work well enough to dispel whatever magic was used on a person.

She ducked at the last second, just barely avoiding a shield that tried to ram her face. She deftly caught the thing and placed it into another storage seal. Jason found the doors magically sealed and Batman bumped into a suit of armor, waking the thing and its friends up. Megami kept sealing weapons into storage seals before protecting Jason from the two suits advancing on him. "You can take Camelot's highly-regarded security system and SHOVE IT UP YOUR ASS! WE NEED MORE HELP THAT A KNIGHT CAN OFFER, YOU MEDIEVAL MORON!" she punctuated her show of violent temper by crushing a suit with nothing more that an axe kick fueled by rage. In any other circumstance, Megami would have laughed hysterically at a six-foot piece of metalwork turning into a four-foot high thing with arms that were waving around frantically. Instead, she channeled wind chakra into her kunai and sliced it in half as if it were a sheet of rice paper.

Batman agreed with the kunoichi. 'I hate magic,' he thought to himself. He grabbed the neck of one of the suits as he flipped over it and threw it into the others. He then charged at the oncoming group with Megami only to be punched in the jaw hard and sent crashing into a stone pillar.

"Gone, gone the form of man. Rise the demon, Etrigan!" The transformation barely took seconds. Gone was the tall, handsome fallen knight; in his place was a short, bulky demonic being. It's yellow skin was tougher than granite and his glowing red eyes sent fear on many who looked upon his terrifying visage. Still, both League members were glad for his arrival, instantly turning the remaining suits into dust (1), having been completely taken apart down to its very atoms by Etrigan's hellfire.

"Etrigan," Batman greeted. His front lightly stung from the wave of fire the demon sent to destroy the armor attacking him. "You could have warned me." It wasn't a complaint, simply a deadpanned statement. Etrigan might fight for the side of good but he was still very much a demon.

Etrigan ignored him. "That witch will pay for her part. I shall feast on her cold dead heart!" The demon cared not for Blood's woes concerning Morgaine; if not for her, hid damned half-brother wouldn't have trapped him in Blood's weak human shell. To be free, Jason must atone for betraying Camelot and that meant killing the witch and her bastard son.

"Charming as ever I see, asshole." Megami strode up to them, healing jutsu already making her hand glow to take care of Batman's jaw and back. "One would think that after all these centuries, Jason would have taught you at least some manners."

"Wench. Still attracting trouble, I see. Of your presence I may never be free." Etrigan turned his glare away from the dust and towards the demoness. Oh she may argue that she was not a true demon of this world and never made Hell her dwelling place but the energy that she possessed was mortal, demonic and divine all at once. Such a thing has never before existed in this world. Oh there have been thousands of half-demons and demigods but never a hybrid such as her. When her existence was discovered centuries ago, even his kind called her a demon while the angels called her a monster. Only mortals called her different things: devil, angel, goddess, witch, sorceress, superhero…

Etrigan was grateful that she mostly fought with him rather than against him though. Her single visit to Hell had her nearly annihilating every army the demon lords threw at her (and that was only because she refused to kill them while making sure none could fight anymore), almost winning their loyalty (and didn't only because she flat out refused it) and impressing them with the creativity of her insults and curses because she 'just wanted to help the fallen knight, missed a fucking turn on the River Styx and wanted to leave, not rule over Hell for all eternity, damn it!'

"Blame Jason; I do. I was ready to leave him at that tavern but then he gave me his sob story. Why did he even tell me his story when we just met anyway? Besides, that one time a few decades ago was that punk kid's fault. We were just in the same area to beat the crap out of that demon he stupidly summoned before he went on a killing spree."

Batman inwardly sighed and cut through their banter. "If the Stone is as powerful as Jason says, we're going to need help." He called all available Leaguers to meet outside Castle Branek.

Megami glared at Etrigan. "Be nice and I won't be forced to make your ugly mug even uglier." Etrigan growled at her, something that would be a threat to most but was an affirmation to her.

Diana was a godsend. Really, she was. Etrigan was intense, blunter than a blow to the head with a sledgehammer and had the disposition of a pissed-off rhino going through PMS when he told them of hunting le Fay and her child. Megami was getting her a freaking award that says Miss Congeniality… right after she teaches her not to ask redundant questions. "You say you've been trailing le Fay and her son for centuries?"

"In an unending game of cat and mouse between us three. For the past generation, they have hidden from me. But never shall I rest until their souls burn in eternal agony!" replied in his gravelly voice.

Flash couldn't help it; he just had to comment, unknowingly following up on the demon prince's rhyming. "And I thought Bats was creepy…" Etrigan moved into the speedster's personal space and growled at him. Megami forced the demon away by pushing his face roughly.

"Ignore him, Flash. Treat everything that comes out of his mouth as bullshit to make himself feel better about being an ugly frilled lizard."

"I shall not be spoken to in this manner, harlot! Else I shall drench your hair of silver in scarlet!"

"Honey, you did that already and I beat your face in with your own leg… among other things…"

Before the acidic argument could turn to blows, Batman interrupted. "How has she eluded you for so long?"

Etrigan turned to Batman, breaking the glaring contest the two demons were engaged in. "The witch has an amulet which can sense when I draw near. It allows her to escape me and move with little fear. My host and I also have other duties. We would oft have more immediate priorities."

Flash darkly muttered under his breath, "With that stench, who needs an amulet?" Meg had told him a bit about Jason and Etrigan. She held the knight in high regard despite all the irritation she caused him and vice versa and saw the demon as a hostile yet tolerated ally at best and someone she wanted to maim at worse.

Etrigan snarled and made to grab Flash by the front of his collar. The only thing that stopped him was the right hook he received from the Scarlet Speedster's girlfriend that sent him into the outer wall of Castle Branek, making a demon-shaped indent. "Flash, now's not the time. You don't have to be civil to Etrigan or Jason when he comes back out but don't provoke him. Etrigan, what did I say about being nice? We have to work together to deal with the witch bitch and her brat. Obviously, we need a better approach for finding Morgaine."

J'onn offered his services as a telepath. It was only seconds later that the Martian screamed in pain. Megami caught him as he collapsed but could do nothing as Morgaine psychically attacked her friend. Forcing yet another psychic connection on J'onn was too dangerous and the Yamanaka mind jutsu would only stress him even more. All they could do was bring him to the Javelin and wait.

Etrigan though, was not one for patience or safety. He forced his way into J'onn's mind ripped him away from the illusion, regardless of the psychological damage he might cause. Both Flash and Megami told Etrigan to piss off when he aimed a backhanded comment at J'onn.

Still, Etrigan had a point. J'onn needed watching.

The flight to Henry Moss' home was uneventful. Shukaku, the shadow clone Megami made to accompany their group, just wished the same could be said for their unannounced meeting with the man. Etrigan was as impatient as ever and confronted the man, sending him into shock. Shukaku arrived soon enough to treat the archeologist while J'onn searched his mind.

She really hoped Taisho, Flash and Diana were having better luck. They, at least, didn't have literally someone with the face of a monster.

The three heroes arrived at the mansion at roughly the same time, Megami performed her father's jutsu and ran the rest of the way while Wonder Woman flew with Flash holding onto her. Diana studied the manse and was unimpressed. She had seen much of what Man's World call luxury and found that they all pale in comparison to Themyscira. This man however… He treats his dwelling more as a gaudy trophy rather than a home, inviting so many strangers of dubious backgrounds to a feast so lavish it was obscene.

"Harv Hickman. Former archeologist, magazine publisher, billionaire and playboy," Megami supplied as Flash and Wonder Woman landed just outside the property. "Found fame in the academia through his excavation of Castle Branek. Afterwards, he found fame and fortune among mainstream media, mainly among the male population, in record time, just months after excavating the castle and announcing his retirement from the field of archeology. Quite suspicious timing if you ask me~"

Diana turned to Flash, hoping for some more information on their target. "Are you familiar with his work?" She wondered what a playboy was though. The man seemed far too advanced in years to still be considered a boy or to find much enjoyment in games for young boys.

Megami smirked as Flash sheepishly said he bought the magazine for the articles. The kunoichi asked Diana to mingle with the crowd in front of the mansion for 'surveillance' in case Morgaine sent some monster disguised as a guest and reminded her not to draw too much attention to herself while she and Flash did a quick patrol of the perimeter. "The articles, huh~ I get it for the softcore porn~ His initial success might be because of the Philosopher's Stone but the man does have an eye for aesthetics~" She gave her boyfriend a peck on the cheek and a sultry wink before starting her patrol. It took Flash a while to pick up his jaw and do the same but he finished soon enough to meet Wonder Woman and Megami near the front of the queue.

Some people complained about the two Leaguers cutting in line but a subtle rise in her chakra was enough to quiet most of them. As oblivious as most people were in this dimension and time, the instinctual need for self-preservation was present.

They approached the security guard, some overmuscled brute in a suit. "Are you on the list?" he asked. From behind his shades, he not so subtly checked out the two women. They were far better than most of the other people who tried to dress as the Justice League in line and his employer's type. Still, unless he got word straight from Hickman, he can't let them enter just yet and asked them to leave.

As if summoned by his thoughts, Harv Hickman arrived at the door and told the guard to wait. Flash and Wonder Woman gave the kunoichi a questioning look only to receive a shake of her head. This time, it really was luck on their side and not a disguised clone or a genjutsu that brought the man to the door.

Their target circled both Megami and Wonder Woman and both knew exactly what they had to do. With a subtle sidelong glance, they shared a nod, both coming up with the same plan, and gave the man charming smiles. "Like what you see, Mr. Hickman?" Megami asked while slightly bending down to give him a better view of her cleavage.

"Or shall my friends and I take our leave?" added Diana. The Amazon was amazed with how much she had changed in less than a year. Had any man ogled her as blatantly as Hickman had, his head would no longer be attached to his neck yet now, she was encouraging his advances… Oh, it might be to gain access to his mansion to retrieve a dangerous artifact but she would never have gained entry in this manner had she not joined the League.

She had yet to decide whether this was a good thing or not.

Hickman grinned at the two beauties before him. "How can I deny such goddess?" He reached for both their hands, which they allowed while sharing amused looks with each other. The old man kissed both their hands as if he were a lord welcoming two highborn ladies to his castle. "Come in~ all of you, come in~"

With that, the League was one step closer to stopping Morgaine.

Batman and Etrigan waited in a nearby belfry. "Le Fay may not know that Moss doesn't have the Stone. If she comes, we'll be waiting." Batman commented. Shukaku, had hidden herself in Moss' den while J'onn had shapeshifted into the elderly man's likeness. To keep the two demonic members of their team from fighting each other and to keep watch, Batman and the demon had retreated to the bell tower.

"I still trust not that Martian," Etrigan said. "He is damaged by the witch's illusion." He knew how powerful le Fay's magic was. His host never got over the poison the witch filled his mind with and it was his downfall when the witch poisoned his body. Though his hate for the witch has grown, the tiny seed of slighted love still has a hold in a corner of his heart.

"I trust J'onn with my life." Batman leveled his glare at the demon. He might know Etrigan and Jason the longest of the League, sans Megami, but he would not tolerate any slights to their honor.

"I shall send flowers to your commemoration."

Morgaine arrived not long after their exchange. Shukaku readied her kodachi, getting ready to sink it into Morgaine's shoulder or arm. Either area would do really. She really wanted to stab her in the neck or heart but Merlin's curse might not be lifted unless it was Jason or Etrigan who dealt the killing blow.

She kept an eye on both J'onn and Morgaine. She knew J'onn's loyalty to the League was strong but she also knew the lengths a broken heart would go through to be whole again. Would he willingly betray the League? No. But mind control wasn't the only way to control someone. Morgaine most likely promised J'onn the revival of Mars and, more importantly, his family if he gave her the Stone. Morgaine sent a wave of magic towards the Martian and that was when she struck. With Morgaine distracted, she couldn't dodge though Mordred came to his mother's aid. He sent a blast of magic at Shukaku that pushed her away. Her sword scratched the gem on Morgaine's breastplate and a quick burst of demonic chakra was more than enough to destroy the intricate web of magic within it. The gem itself was still whole but it was now nothing more than a useless trinket. 'At least now Jason will have an easier time tracking these two.'

She managed to avoid dispelling by adjusting her body so that her feet hit the wall instead of her back and she sent a hail of shuriken at the duo. Mordred, proving that he was his mother's child, shielded them from the attack. Etrigan and Batman then entered the den by crashing through the window. The demon sent a wave of hellfire at the witch, which she blocked.

"Still so bitter, my love?" She asked sardonically.

While Morgaine dealt with the two men, Mordred was flagging under Shukaku's constant barrages of low-level offensive jutsu and projectiles. Anything more would cause far too much damage to Moss' home and endanger both her team and the old man resting upstairs. "J'onn! Get your butt in gear!"

J'onn though was being attacked once more by the ghost of his beloved wife. Batman tried to snap him out of it only to be blasted by Morgaine. He was sent into Etrigan and through the wall.

"Batman!" Shukaku was forced to stop her attacks to attend to her comrade. The two magic users escaped with no one to detain them but not before Morgaine attacked the clone from behind, dispelling her before she could begin to heal Batman's injuries.

Miles away, Megami faltered as she walked into a mansion. Terror gripped at her; the last thing her clone saw was Batman unmoving on the ground.

(1) Anyone else notice that the armors turned to dust rather than melted while watching the show? Really, I think Etrigan scooping up still red hot and liquid iron would be much more dramatic and macho than scooping up dust and letting it fall back to the floor…