"Wait, I can explain—"
A golden beam of light shot straight toward my head.
I barely ducked in time. The light passed over me and singed the tips of my hair.
Books, tables, and chairs flew through the doors around us before barreling straight toward the flying magician. Simmy's harsh song filled the air; she floated in front of me, a storm of furniture orbiting her like a miniature star system.
"Consorting with things from beyond this world as well?" Dr. Fate gave a disdainful snort. "As expected of a craven lowlife."
More golden Ankhs appeared around him, forming a barrier that casually blocked Simmy's barrage. Her song did not seem to have much effect either.
Okay. Plan B, then.
I snapped my fingers.
Gary and Stu appeared in all their terrifying glory. I waved my hand, and a dozen potions dropped out of my inventory.
I tossed the bottles to them. "BEAT HIS ASS!"
The two gargoyles wasted no time snapping up the various buff potions and throwing them down their gullets.
Multicolored light washed over them. The pair let out a gigantic war cry, and the air shook as they both launched themselves toward Dr. Fate.
"Useless." Dr. Fate waved his hands, conjuring a pair of giant Ankhs that flew right at them. "This is my sanctum. Nothing can stop—"
Two very angry gargoyles slammed straight into him.
"—FAAAATTTEEEE!"
His voice echoed while his body went flying.
Gary and Stu roared in delight, ripping off the few remaining golden fragments of the Ankhs they had bulldozed through before flying after him. Simmy trailed close behind, her arsenal of furniture at the ready.
Heh. Serves you right, asshole.
It was an unfortunate limitation of my potions that you couldn't just endlessly stack a single effect. No mindlessly chugging strength potion after strength potion until you could punt a mountain into orbit.
But synergy was king.
A swathe of different strength, durability, and vitality-boosting potions could temporarily achieve a discount Superman package, and that was when a normal person drank them. It was expensive as all hell using so many mid-grade potions, but oh so worth it.
"UNHAND ME!" Dr. Fate screamed as Gary grabbed him by the leg and whipped him around like a golden ragdoll. "WRETCH, I—"
The magician didn't get to finish before Gary slammed him into the ground face-first. A golden glow covered Dr. Fate, seemingly protecting him, but it probably wasn't pleasant to be planted halfway into the floor.
Golden chains erupted from the ground and snapped around Gary's arms and wings.
The gargoyle snarled, muscles bulging as he strained against the bindings. The chains creaked but held, glowing brighter with every second. Dr. Fate tore himself free from the crater and shot back into the air, his cloak snapping behind him as more Ankhs flared to life around his body.
Stu tackled him straight through a floating bookshelf. Dr. Fate's barrier flickered under the impact, but it still refused to break.
A ring of Ankhs blasted outward.
Stu was hurled back, skidding across the floor on his claws before digging in and launching himself forward again. Gary snapped one chain with a furious roar, only for three more to lash around his chest and throat.
Dr. Fate raised both hands. Golden light gathered between them, burning bright enough to make my eyes water.
Then Simmy's furniture storm slammed into him from behind.
A chair cracked against his helmet.
The golden light in his hands sputtered for a moment.
Gary ripped free of the chains and grabbed Dr. Fate by the cape.
He swung him straight into Stu, and Stu happily clotheslined the glowing bastard out of the air.
Dr. Fate's screams reverberated through the tower.
I couldn't tell if they came from pain or rage, but either way, they were like music to my ears.
Still, as much as I enjoyed the sound, I noticed one very important problem.
He wasn't going down.
"How long do those potions last?" Barbara asked, worry creeping into her voice.
I frowned. "A few minutes at most."
"Then we should probably start booking it," Barbara said. "I've heard things from a few magic friends. Beating a wizard in his own tower is borderline impossible when they can draw power from it. And Dr. Fate's tower is basically the most famous example."
Should I leave?
Logically, I understood her point.
But fuck that.
This asshole hadn't even let me explain before trying to kill us.
I'd had people try to kill me before, but at least most of them had the decency to have a real reason!
He was trying to kill me over a stupid misunderstanding.
Dr. Fate and his stupid tower could burn in hell—
…Oh.
Oh!
I rubbed my hands together as a wonderful idea dawned on me.
"Jean?" Barbara asked.
"Barbara," I said slowly. "Have you ever committed arson?"
"…No."
"Well…" I grinned as I pulled out a bottle. "First time for everything!"
—
How did it come to this?
Barbara gripped Jean's back tightly as he carried her through the Tower of Fate. The halls stretched on endlessly around them, passing room after room.
If only she'd gotten a chance to talk.
But no, Dr. Fate had to immediately try to fry Jean and her with no questions asked.
This was merely the most logical next step.
Yes, this totally wasn't her fault.
"Light 'em up!" Jean cackled.
Oh god…
Barbara tossed another potion against the wall.
The bottle shattered, and pale blue flames burst across the stone. The fire spread impossibly fast, crawling over the tower's walls like a living tide.
"NOOOO!" Dr. Fate screamed.
Far in the distance, Barbara could just make him out struggling to follow them while Jean's weird gargoyles and angel played defense.
She would never admit it out loud, but hearing that pompous ass scream like a little girl was cathartic.
"Barbara! Barbara! Barbara!" Jean chanted.
Yeah!
Yeah, this wasn't her fault!
This was all Dr.Fate's fault.
Barbara laughed as she threw another bottle into a room full of various podiums.
"ARGHHHHHH!" Dr. Fate screamed again.
A golden Ankh appeared in front of them.
"Enough!"
Barbara's eyes widened as Dr. Fate stepped through it, golden light spilling from his cloak and helmet. The air around him twisted under the weight of his magic.
The giant gargoyles launched themselves between them without hesitation.
Dr. Fate slapped both his hands together.
A golden wave exploded across the room.
The blast hit like a truck. Both gargoyles were smashed aside, their massive bodies carving trenches through the floor before slamming into the walls. Huge dents had been punched into their chests, deep enough that Barbara felt her stomach twist.
Jean moved before she could even scream.
He twisted and threw her out of the way.
Barbara hit the ground hard, rolling across the floor as the golden wave roared past where she'd been. Heat and pressure washed over her back. For one terrifying second, she couldn't breathe.
Then Jean slammed into the opposite wall.
"Jean!" she shouted.
Dr. Fate floated forward, gold light blazing around him.
"No more games," he said, voice cold with fury. "This ends now."
Jean struggled to his feet, one hand braced against the wall.
A two-pronged dagger appeared in his other hand. He gritted his teeth, pulled his arm back, and threw it.
The throw was sloppy, nowhere near fast enough to catch him by surprise.
Dr. Fate simply stepped aside.
The blade bounced off the floor, skipped once, then skittered across the stone in a spray of sparks.
Right toward Barbara.
She froze as it scraped past her hand.
Dr. Fate didn't even look at it. His attention stayed locked on Jean as he descended, golden light burning around his body like a second sun.
Jean tried to move, but Fate stomped down on his chest and pinned him to the floor.
"You die now, abomination."
Golden light gathered in his hand.
Barbara didn't think.
She crawled forward, fingers scraping against the floor, and grabbed the dagger by the hilt. Her arm screamed as she twisted, aimed, and threw.
This time, the dagger flew true.
It pierced straight through Dr. Fate's golden barrier.
And buried itself right in his ass.
"…What?" Dr. Fate stumbled.
Golden light flared violently.
His cloak vanished. His armor disappeared. The helmet popped off his head and clattered across the floor, spinning once before coming to a stop. The man hosting Dr.Fate groaned as he collapsed with it.
Jean then slowly pushed himself up, seemingly completely ignoring his serious injury.
"Hooray," he cheered. "Everything's solved!"
Barbara stayed silent.
She stared at the very much still-burning Tower of Fate. Then at the possibly murdered Dr. Fate. Then at the magical dagger currently sticking out of a man's butt.
"What. The. Fuck."
Comments and Thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Likes are like a drug to me and boost my creative juices.
I have advanced chapters on Pa tre on/daisyberry if you wanna read ahead.