|3:33AM EDT
Unknown Location

A swirling orange portal shone through the dark hall of the castle. Moments later, a boy carrying a small, orange-brown cat jumped out. An angry expression was etched on the boy's face as he threw his cat on the ground. Reflecting her master's anger, the cat hissed furiously at him.

"What, Teekl?" the boy said. "It wasn't my fault those fools couldn't hold their end of the pentagram. Besides, this was the perfect diversion."

Teekl, the cat, meowed with frustration as her master nearly stepped on her tail.

"Why am I mad at you, then?" the boy asked mockingly. "Because, one, you let that new girl free. Two, you blocked your thoughts which you've never done before. And three.. Well, I'm also mad at you because I can be."

Teekl rolled her eyes at the last one.

"So Teekl.. Why did you push me out of your mind?" Klarion cooly glanced down at his fingernails. "Is there something you don't want me to know?"

Teekl glanced up at her master before sighing. Her eyes glowed red, and she seemed to be speaking telepathically to her master. As the telepathic conversation drew on, the boy's face became absolutely spiteful. His face formed a scowl before he let out a cackle of delight.

"So dear old Nabu lied to us? Oh, this is perfect!" Klarion laughed maniacally. "We cursed him into that helmet for nothing!" His cat purred as if remembering the moment Klarion cursed the Lord of Order into his helmet.

"Don't worry Teekl," Klarion smirked. "We'll deal with Nabu and the girl later. For now, we have a meeting to attend to."

|10:17AM EDT
Mount Justice

"Don't sit up yet. The burns are still healing," I heard a voice above me say as I groaned. There was a sharp stinging in my arms, my stomach, my thighs, and.. Well, mostly everywhere.

I blinked fast as my vision started to clear. Above me, I saw a green martian staring down at me, but it wasn't M'gann.

"Who are you? And what happened?" my voice was hoarse, and I wanted a cup of water desperately. Seeing this, the martian telepathically lifted a glass filled with water up in the air. He took it in his hands and lifted it up to my mouth, so I could drink.

"I am Martian Manhunter and uncle to M'gann. What happened? I cannot explain everything except that you are burned quite severely," M'gann's uncle replied. "Batman sent me here to speed up the healing process. I have been telepathically sending your body commands on how it should heal. I've never done this before, but it was necessary for your health. Right now, your wounds will feel like first-degree burns."

I paused for a second, looking at the gauze wrapped around a large portion of my body.

"Will they scar?" I asked quietly.

"Yes," Martian Manhunter replied, "but I'm sure you have a spell for that somewhere."

I looked down again before saying, "I think.. I think I'd rather leave the scars. It'll serve as a reminder that I.. that I chose this new life. Whatever happened before, it doesn't matter because this is me now."

It was quiet before Martian Manhunter smiled and said, "You have courage, Reinette. But I fear my peers do not all agree."

I looked up at him with wide eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Some of my friends," the martian said, "do not see you as an ally. They think that the Light orchestrated that scheme in the museum and genetically engineered you to look like the statue. Shockingly, I have even heard some say that you will destroy us all."

"I don't even know who the Light is," I replied, outrage barely hidden in my voice.

Martian Manhunter sighed, "But on a lighter note. I think you have gained the favor of the Team. They've been waiting for you to wake up."

"Can I see them?" delight quickly replaced my anger.

The martian chuckled, "Of course. I'm sure they'll be quick to come."

|10:19AM EDT
Unknown Location

In another cave, far, far away, a man shrouded in darkness sat on a rock. Strikingly, if seen at the right angle, the rock seemed to be in the shape of a crudely made throne. The man was wearing a simple business suit, but contrary to the gloomy surroundings, it was neat and crisp. His shoes shone brightly as if it was polished mere minutes ago.

Two men with large guns strapped to their backs suddenly hauled in a stricken scientist. His head was bald, and his hair was slowly starting to gray. He wore a white lab coat with jeans and a dark green polo underneath. The most notable feature he had were his emerald green eyes.

"L-let me go!" the old man's voice shook.

The man on the throne motioned with his hand, and the two guards threw the scientist on the ground. His wrist hit the rocky floor with a sickening crunch, and the man yelped in pain.

"Not until you complete what I brought you here for, Professor Russo," the man said coldly. He received no reply as the man continued to rock back and forth, clutching onto his broken wrist.

The man on the throne stood up intimidatingly, and when Professor Russo saw his face, he trembled with fear. The man had a disfigured face so misshapen that it didn't even resemble that of a man's. A large, red bulge cut through his features, passing from the bottom of his left ear and diagonally crossing all the way across his left eye and ended on the top right of his forehead. Because of this, his left eye was completely covered, but the outer edges of his eye socket was just barely visible. His jaw hung limp, and his teeth were raggedly sharp. His skin was taut and bulging, and the only thing normal was his right eye. Well, most of it. Instead of a natural color tinting his iris, it was a blood red color.

The monster of a man walked over to Russo before stomping his foot onto his broken wrist. The professor howled in anguish, and he looked to guards with desperate eyes, as if he was silently pleading for them to stop his torture. Instead, they were laughing.

After a few moments of crushing the remaining bones of his wrist, the demon kicked the poor man in the ribs. Another crack could be heard, and the professor gasped. Without even letting Russo catch his breath, the monster grabbed the professor and hauled him up by the collar.

"Who- who are y-you?" Russo whimpered.

The demon laughed sadistically, "I am Vladimir, a victim of a curse wrought on me. And for that, I need you to quench my thirst for revenge."

"What if I won't obey?" the scientist spoke boldly, but his eyes were alight with terror.

"You will," Vladimir grinned while his jaw hung loosely. He then threw Professor Russo back to the ground.

"I want you to make me an elixir," Vladimir turned his back on the man.

"E-elixir?" Professor Russo stuttered out.

"Yes," Vladimir said cooly, "I will provide all the magical ingredients you will need. I know the inhabitants of Earth do not deal with magic, but I heard you were an alchemist with incredible skills. I figured alchemy is close enough to potion making."

"But what if I can't m-make i-i-it?"

Vladimir turned to look at the pitiful man in front of him, "You don't want to know."

AN: This is a short chapter, but I needed a filler chapter. Anyway, I've been struggling to pull the plot together, but I think I've got it now. School started back up today, so I won't be updating every day. Maybe once a week, or every other week. Anyway, review your critiques/comments/questions! They'll help improve the story :)