Chapter 7: A Mage, A Clown, A Mercenary.

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Zatara Residence: Study Room

Anakin Skywalker

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Giovanni Zatara stood by the long oak table, sleeves rolled up, holding an ornate vase that faintly shimmered with runic light.  With a murmured word in reverse Italian, the object dissolved into a puff of golden smoke, reforming into a simple ceramic plate that he placed on the table.

[Enchanted Plate]

[Description: A plate enchanted for increased durability by Giovanni to test Vader's clairvoyance and Zatanna’s magical sensitivity. Contains purposefully hidden enchantment.]

As we had done multiple times before, I told him what [Identify] told me. An hour of work in exchange for some more books on magic seemed like a rather good deal to me, and there was no reason good enough to turn him down.

The room itself, shelves stacked with old magical tomes lined the walls, while enchanted candles floated lazily near the ceiling, with glowing blue flames instead of orange. It smelled, unsurprisingly, of old books and a little lavender, most likely from whatever cleaning products he used and not magic, as I couldn’t sense it. Then again, there were a few things we had tested today that I couldn’t sense, hence the trial and error for the last hour. 

“Fascinating,” Zatara smiled with a twinkle in his eye. “Truly fascinating how accurate your clairvoyance is.” He turned the plate over once, inspecting the faint glowing runes as his eyes moved between the plate and me. “Cosmic in nature, unmistakably so, and much closer to the Flash’s abilities, if only also from a different source. But it's still noticeable, if you know what to sense for.”

Yep. That was just something I would have to deal with until I got to the higher levels of the ability. In the meantime, I would learn as much about magic as I could to fight off the magic users that eventually sense me while using it.

With a faint smirk, I inclined my head. “I figured as much.” I leaned forward, studying the plate for a few moments. Then, with a hum, I added. “There’s at least one hidden enchantment that my clairvoyance can’t see.”

Zatara laughed softly, snapping his fingers so that the plate floated back to its shelf. “Exactly. It will take time to develop to the point where you can sense further, but I suppose the more magic you are exposed to the better. You’ll get used to things quicker that way.” He gestured, and several thick volumes appeared in his hands, which he placed neatly on the table in front of me. “The books I promised for satisfying my curiosity. Don’t worry about returning them.”

I gave the mage a small nod and passed a hand above the stack, putting them in the [Inventory], which earned me a raised brow from Zatara. “And there it goes again. I still can’t sense when you do that, even with my level of experience. I still think you are more space-attuned, but with it being only one space-related skill you are this exceptional at, I’ll hold off on that conclusion until you learn to teleport or open portals.”

“That’s good,” I snorted. “Means my opponents won’t sense it either.”

The [Inventory], unlike [Identify], was a skill I was given from the very beginning, and based on his analysis, it was already at a significantly high rank. We had yet to thoroughly test it much, though. All we had done was put things like large room-sized furniture, and as for the distance, well, I had to be practically touching it. Unfortunately, I didn’t seem to have the ability to take armour off someone, and weapons had to be pulled out of their sheath, even if only slightly, for me to take that from them as well.

So, if I were fighting someone like Iron Man in the Marvel universe, I wouldn’t just be able to steal his armour by placing a hand on it while he was wearing it. And I wouldn’t be able to just take Deathstroke’s sword from his back unless I slightly pulled it out first.

Zatara chuckled, levitating a tray of steaming tea, small cakes, and snacks from a nearby sideboard to the table, gently setting them in front of us. “Batman would have loved something like that,” he said with an amused expression. “All that stealth, and no cape required.”

I smiled faintly, picking up a few cakes and putting them in the [Inventory]. Not that he could see my features, since I still had my helmet on, but something tells me he had an emotion-sensing thing going for himself. “I’ll take the compliment. But there’s something about a cape that still makes it useful.” Tapping my own cloak, I rose from his chair. “What’s your opinion on precognition?”

I had a few visions of the future, much like the main Anakin did of his mother and Padme. But mine were of a girl being kidnapped by a four glowing-eyed demon. One I knew well, thanks to my meta knowledge.

Trigon.

And since it was Trigon kidnapping a girl, then I knew the girl was Raven. And based on the vision, he succeeds in taking her to his realm for… readjustment. The violent kind, that is.

On the bright side, I didn’t see her die. Which was either good, because it meant there was a chance the vision was accurate — meaning heroes had a chance to make it on time to save her — or it was incomplete. Then again, it could be accurate but changeable, or even a different dimension’s events altogether. Either way, the version of Raven I saw was around my age, and if the timeline I was in was close to the Young Justice-verse like it indicated so far, then it meant I had years before it was a real problem.

I was pretty sure Raven was supposed to be Damian Wayne’s age here, and he was years younger than Dick Grayson, the current Robin.

“Precognition?” Zatara arched an eyebrow as the faintest of smiles curled at the edge of his lips. “A useful ability, and one highly coveted among mages. Few can handle it well, fewer still understand its cost.” He tilted his head slightly as his eyes gained a knowing look. “I assume that’s one of the reasons why you wanted those runes placed around the Zeta Tubes, excluding the fact that your clairvoyance told you of the mind alterations in John’s mind.”

Oh, good, he was fully recognised as John now. Good that some good things were staying the same.

“I saw a potential future where it would have been rather useful,” I didn’t elaborate beyond that. It was only a potential possibility after all. I just wanted to plant a seed to get some help in future, so when the time comes, people don't think I'm being reckless and just acting without thinking.

Zatara leaned back, stroking his chin with a small frown on his face. “My own studies have shown that the further ahead one looks, the less reliable visions become. Possibility turns to probability, and that has led many to insanity. Sadly, Seers also run the risk of being the reason the future they see happens in the first place. I would be careful, Vader. Don’t let what you might see harden into what you believe will happen.”

Internally, I snorted. “I don’t. That’s why I went with runes around the Zeta Tubes instead of taking action against those who might betray the League against their will. If the individuals were caught after my warning, then we would run the risk of those responsible just going after someone else. But with the runes, we would be able to recognise the attempt every time it happened… in theory.”

“A good choice,” Zatara smiled as genuine approval entered his tone. “Honestly, I felt a little disappointed in myself for not suggesting it when I was a bigger part of the league.” He shook his head ruefully while softly chuckling to himself. “There are quite a few things I would have done differently if I were blessed with that level of foresight.”

He had a faraway look in his eye, which led me to believe he was thinking of his deceased wife, who sacrificed herself to save him and Zatanna. Although, that was what happened in other timelines. In the Young Justice universe, she supposedly died of cancer. But the more that I thought about it, the more I thought it may have been a cover-up, due to the things I had read on healing magic and alien technology.

Then again, he could have been thinking about the mind-wipe of Ralph Dibney of his wife, who was raped by Doctor Light and killed by Ray Palmer's, while she was pregnant. Comics could be diabolical when they wanted to be.

Setting that aside for now, I refocused the conversation. “I may need a favour, eventually. If one of those other visions comes to pass.”

That drew him out of his memories. His brows rose, but he didn’t ask for details, just looked at my helmet for a few moments and seemed to have seen something that told him enough. Instead, he nodded slowly. “How dangerous?”

I met his gaze. “Only to me and the person I’ll be trying to save will be in danger, at least for the favour part. No innocents will be at risk. But I don't think the League would want me to go for safety reasons."

“The league typically has a good reason for not letting people save others, so there must be a reason they would be against you stepping in.” 

“I'm pretty sure it has something to do with being more prepared,” I shrugged. “But, I can sense emotions. So I'm pretty sure she may be getting tortured in the time they spend preparing. Either that, or they simply wouldn't want me to go due to the sheer danger level not being worth saving one person.”

“I take it that sending Superman is not an option in this potential future?” He asked with a raised brow.

“No,” I shook my head. “It's magic and mind control related. He would end up being a problem rather than a solution.”

“Shazam could be useful.”

“True,” I agreed. “But, I personally don't feel comfortable sending a child on what the league considers a suicide mission. It's  not like sending Robin against a local thug, knowing the thug would be the one needing help at the end of the day. I'd only need your help opening a door so to speak. I'll do the rest.”

Zatara studied me for a long, quiet moment, then gave a slow, knowing nod. “Will it be worth it?”

I stared back, thinking back to the absolute shithole Earth and basically the rest of the universe would turn out to be if Trigon succeeded. “It might very well be the most important thing I do in my entire hero career.”

And I meant that too. At least, that was what the emotions from the vision were telling me.

Giovanni smiled as he summoned a hat out of nowhere, tipping it with a theatrical flair. “Consider my curiosity piqued, young man. When the time comes, if you call, I’ll answer.” His smile faded, replaced by a faint tightening of his jaw. “If your analysis of the situation puts innocents in danger, however…” His voice hardened, bleeding the mentor tone out and replacing it with that of a sorcerer who had seen too much. “…then I will most likely decline. No matter your reasoning.”

I nodded without so much as a flinch, accepting the help and boundary for what it was. I had a backup plan in case he didn't come through, but I just didn't want it to go to that if I could help it. “That’s good enough for me.”

I reached down, plucking some of the small pastries from the platter between us and putting them in the [Inventory] for later. It was still dark out, which meant I still had enough time for patrols. A glance at the clock on the wall told me it was only a few minutes past midnight.

“The others on the table are enchanted to change their hair colour,” I said with a dry note of humour. He no doubt sensed my use of [Identify] when I reached for a few. “But you already know that.”

Zatara just chuckled softly under his breath. “It was worth a try.”

I inclined my head slightly before moving toward the door. “And thank you for the books.”

When I opened it, I found Zatanna leaning as casually as she could against the wall with one foot braced behind her. Next to her, Robin stood more naturally, but both of them were wearing identical we-definitely-weren’t-listening expressions.

“Hey.” Robin gave a lopsided grin. “We were just passing by and thought we might as well wait till you were done.”

He and I had been going on patrols from time to time over the last few days. Batman had been busy and he wasn't allowed out on his own. As much as I wanted to laugh when I forced him to tell me why he suggested it, it did make a lot of sense. Future Jason Todd would agree.

“Right. Totally coincidental hallway break.” Giovanni added dully.

Even if I didn't have the meta knowledge, I knew Robin would be trying to get with Zatanna at some point just by the way he was standing next to her. Zatanna was only a year older than he was, and it was comics. It was only a matter of time.

“You should work on hiding your magical presence better,” I advised, giving her a nod as I stepped past. “I've sensed you trying to get in for over half an hour, and I'm assuming your father knew before I did.”

Robin chuckled, falling into step beside me and giving a quick wave over his shoulder. “Catch you later, Zee.”

As we made it further down the hallway, I heard Giovanni’s exasperated voice drift out from the study. “Zatanna, you could stand to be more like Vader – focus on your magic, not dating!”

Her reply came half-defensive, half-sheepish. “I was focusing! I was practising my ward-breaking, yours are just too good! And what do you mean by dating? What about eavesdropping can be considered dating?”

Now that had me turning to Robin as we walked, who did his best to act like I didn't exist. I was kind enough not to say anything that would embarrass him in front of his future girl, but that would not stop me from firing shots during our patrol.

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It didn't take long for Robin's scanner to pick something up. And by that, I mean it only took a few minutes of leaving the Zatara residence before someone in Gotham reported a crime in progress. Not that there weren't any crimes happening that weren't being reported.

Naturally, we headed straight there, both on modified bikes, courtesy of the Caped Crusader himself. He even took it a step further and gave me one for my personal use, under some weird clause that allowed him to provide transport to anyone with a Wayne Industries scholarship to Gotham or Metropolitan University. A scholarship I ‘applied’ for a while ago.

The Vader Cycle turned out to be just the Batpod from the Dark Knight series, with the weapons included, which had me chuckling inside when I saw it as one of the options I could choose from. The scholarship bike I was given was an all black Ducati 1199 Panigale, and Bruce Wayne wasted no time bragging about being able to afford giving such a gift to a random scholarship winner on the news for days, while also insulting other billionaires like Lex Luthor for their lack of contributions to the youth.

I didn't really care about all that though, they rode like a dream and I wasted no time getting started on altering their components to make them more efficient. I ended up liking them so much that I didn’t even feel put off in the slightest at the lack of resources to make full upgrades to transformable Star Wars-style speeders, nor did I take out the hidden trackers I found. While I was once again tempted to ask the big ‘ol Bat for more tech, like I am whenever tinkering with C3PO, I still had my eye on the tech from Professor Ivo.

When we arrived at the warehouse, we perched on the edge of a rooftop on an adjacent building like gargoyles, immediately whipping out high-tech binoculars and getting right to scanning the area.

“Joker and Harley,” Robin murmured. I could see them, Joker was pacing in a broken office while Harley was perched on a crate swinging one leg after another. “And a few henchmen on the roof and at the entrance.”

“This is likely what the silence was for after that Arkham break-out,” I said, keeping my eyes on the scope. “The government should really ask why it’s so easy for killers with those kinds of body counts to walk out the front door.”

Robin snorted softly through his nose. “I read that Bruce Wayne has tried multiple times, but corruption runs deeper than a single prison guard.”

Even when we were alone in costume, the rule was always to keep the use of hero identities to a minimum.

I went to reply, but ended up just shaking my head in disappointment as I saw the reading on the thermal map. “I can visually confirm twelve. But, there’s one more hiding on the same floor as Joker. They’re not showing on the heat sensors.”

Robin’s brow creased as he slid his own binoculars back into his utility belt. “Same here. The last person must be magical or have high tech with them. We’ll handle the hidden one when we reach him.”

We didn’t even so much as share a nod before moving like shadows. Slipping down the fire escape, they dropped to a shadowed alley that fed toward the warehouse’s side entrance. Robin’s wrist computer indicated the two guards we saw at the door, both leaning on the wall, smoking, too comfortable and bored to be considered anything but grunts and henchmen.

Using the additional stealth training I had been getting from Robin and his mentor over the last few days,  ensuring the first guard never had time to think was easy. A straightforward application of the Force knocked him out in no time, eyes shutting before he even hit the floor. Robin’s boot connected cleanly with the second guard’s jaw, snapping that sent him down like a marionette cut free. Neither made a sound enough to rouse suspicion.

Robin tied off the guards’ hands with reinforced zip ties while I used the Force to strip and disable their weapons, removing firing pins, barrels, and emptying their magazines. Each weapon was set aside in a pile where neither henchman could reach it, provided reinforcements didn’t set them free.

“No alerts,” Robin said under his breath as he ensured they were firmly connected to a steel pipe, while connecting to their radio frequency while he was at it.

After checking the connection on my Vader phone, I put it back in the [Inventory] while giving him a nod to let him know I got it, then we slipped inside the warehouse through the unlocked service door. The first thing we checked for was cameras, and there weren’t any. They didn’t have time or need to set them up, and the racks of crates made it easy to move unnoticed. We drew our grapple guns and fired, catching a girder and silently hoisting ourselves up, then dropped silently onto a catwalk above the main floor.

Every so often, a muffled grunt or thud broke the rhythm as one more of the Joker’s men was yeeted into the dark and disappeared into unconsciousness. If we weren’t the good guys, I would have thought we were the villains in a horror movie.

When a pair of thugs near a crate stack began whispering nervously about missing comrades, my use of the Force made them stiffen as their hands clawed at their throats, gasping for air. In seconds, they crumpled to the floor, eyes rolled back.

The silence that followed broke when Harley Quinn came bounding out from behind a pile of crates in her usual red-and-black outfit. “Well, well, if it ain’t Bat’s baby bird!” she sang, hefting her oversized wooden mallet. “Where’s Daddy Bats, huh? Didn’t feel like playin’ tonight?” Robin spun, sidestepping her first wild swing. The mallet smashed into a crate, splintering wood and sending shards flying. Harley grinned manically as she twisted for another blow. “Guess that means I’ll just have to crack open the sidekick piñata myself!”

Robin flipped backwards as the mallet whooshed past him again, ignoring her laughter. “You talk too much,” he muttered, landing on a railing. She spun, bringing the mallet around in a full arc, but he was already above her. He dropped, twisting mid-air, and his boot connected squarely with her jaw with much more force than he used on the henchmen. The impact sent her tumbling backwards, crashing into the crate she’d just demolished, while her mallet rolled from her hand, clattering to the floor.

Robin exhaled through his nose, smirking faintly. “Batman had better things to do,” he said dryly, looking down at her unconscious form.

He was aura farming, there was no doubt about it.

A quick dip into the [Inventory] had a pair of cuffs floating from his inventory, spinning in the air before snapping neatly around Harley’s wrists with a soft click. Unlike the henchmen who got strong zip ties, she was somewhat built-different – she had to be to move a mallet like she did at her size.

With the thugs neutralised and Harley secured, the two of us advanced deeper into the warehouse. Robin adjusted the display on his wrist computer as they moved. “Any change with the hidden one?”

“No.” My voice only came out through his communicator to make sure I wasn’t heard.  “Still there.”

Robin frowned. “So it’s a trap… like almost always.”

“Definitely,” I nodded. “But we’ll have to spring it.”

Robin nodded as he scanned the layout of the next room. “Alright. I’ll see you inside.” He gestured toward a series of canisters lining the vents, each one painted with the Joker’s unmistakable grin. Then he slipped into the shadows, taking a different route along the catwalk toward the upper access corridor.

We had seen a few of them on the way here, but there was some sort of failsafe that would take too long to deal with before the Joker got restless. The man might have been insane, but he was oddly intelligent when it came to his mischief.

I  turned toward the large set of doors at the centre of the hallway, sensing the only other conscious beings in the building. The grin painted across it mirrored the Joker’s twisted face, much like the canisters, which had me shaking my head. 

It was like he didn’t realise Batman was a detective and couldn’t figure out that that was where he would be, or that he would easily figure out the canisters were bad news. Then again, he was a man who wanted to keep ‘playing’ with the Bat, so maybe he just didn’t want to accidentally actually win. He was a weird one to figure out.

For a moment, I simply stared, not sensing any immediate danger from the Force, then pressed my gloved palm to the latch and slowly swung it open. Inside, the Joker was standing beneath flickering lights, green-haired and waiting with a grin on his face. He was surrounded by half-dismantled toys and barrels of the same canister.

“Well, well, well!” He spread his arms theatrically. “Look what the cowl dragged in. And here I thought Bats had finally upgraded, dark colours, brooding, a dramatic voice. Oh wait, he already had all that!” He cackled. “Tell me, tin man, are you his new intern or just another midlife crisis in armour?”

If he thought the armour I had on was ‘tin man’ worthy, then he hadn’t seen anything yet. I mean, I was in my Anakin’s clone wars armour, which was my least reinforced armour. Regardless, I didn’t answer. I merely stepped forward, looking for any sign that knocking him out would cause the gas to be released.

“Ooh, he’s quiet too!” Joker’s grin only widened. “I like this one. Maybe I’ll paint you purple when I’m done, something to match my eyeshadow, hm?”

For a moment, we just stared at each other. Until he frowned, cocking his head to the side. “Hellooo? I brought the balloons! Aren’t you going to say anything?!”

Still, I remained silent. The person hiding didn’t make themself known either, so I was starting to think it may be linked to them and not the Joker, like some sort of misdirect. 

Joker’s grin wavered, then snapped back. “You’ve got the brooding look down, and I’ll admit I do love the cape. You and Bats clearly shop at the same store, but pleeeeease don’t tell me he sent you as a stand-in?” My lack of reaction made his eye twitch. “Y’knw what, fine!”

Joker snapped, yanking a revolver from his coat and firing three shots. The bullets cut through the air before freezing centimetres from my open palm as I did Anakin’s imitation of Neo, not that he hadn’t done something similar with blaster fire.

I made sure the bullets dropped harmlessly to the floor one by one for dramatic effect as the Joker stared, mouth half-open. “Oh, that’s cheating.” He grinned again as the manic light returned to his eyes while he thumbed a small trigger he retrieved from the desk next to him. “Let’s see how you like–”

The rest strangled off into a choking gasp. His arm froze mid-gesture as his entire body locked in place. As my [Force Choke] lifted him onto his toes, I flowed the trigger over to my open palm, placing it in the [Inventory]. With the remote now found and in my possession, I no longer needed him alive – I mean, conscious. I just watched as he coughed and wheezed before, strangely, turning back into that ghastly giggle as his face reddened.

“You… people… need… to lighten up–” he wheezed one last time before his eyes rolled back and his body went limp.

Lord knows I wanted to kill the bastard, but I think it was too early to do that with my limited resources and skills. With a genuine sigh, I released the clown to collapse in a heap beside his revolver after removing the bullets and emptying his pockets of knives and extra ammo.

Then I turned my helmet slightly toward a pillar while levitating cuffs onto the Joker’s wrists. “You can come out now.”

There was a beat of silence before Deathstroke himself stepped out from behind the pillar in all his black and yellow glory, sword sheathed across his back and everything. He made a show of making sure I could see the small rune-etched stone in his gloved hand. My magical studies informed me that it was specifically designed to defend against heat sensors and aid stealth.

“Well,” Deathstroke drawled, turning the stone over between his fingers like a conman would a coin, “I can officially check ‘detecting life through stone walls’ off my to-do list.”

So he had been keeping an eye on me then. Not surprising.

I shifted my stance a little, taking a half step forward to make sure I wasn’t facing him square on. “So this was your trap then. Not the Joker’s.”

“Please,” Deathstroke snorted with a lazy wave of the rune-etched rock. “The clown’s just noise. The real plan was to draw you out.” The glint in his single visible eye somehow showed he was smiling under the mask, like a silver-haired scarecrow I know of from my past life. “And judging by the fact you’re standing here, and the boy wonder has gone off to the computer to disarm the canister, I’d say that’s mission accomplished.”

Wanting to gain more information before knocking him out, I tilted my head slightly. “And why would you—”

I didn't even get to finish my sentence before, the room exploded in white light, and my ears went out due to the distinct sound of flash bangs. I sensed the danger before it happened, but my instinct was to create a wall of telekinetic Force to protect myself and… some of the Joker from a grenade.

A decision that was clearly a grave mistake, considering I was now shutting my eyes and using [Curato Salva] to heal my eyes. Deathstroke wasn’t kind enough to give me time to recuperate, though. I could feel him move through the Force, unsheathing his blade with one hand and brandishing his gun with the other in one smooth motion as he charged.

But… I was Darth Vader for crying out loud. This wouldn’t be the first time this tactic was used to take me down, and it wouldn’t be the last. My hand was already thrust forward for an instinctual [Force Push].

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“I'm a Mandalorian. Weapons are a part of my religion.”

– Din Djarin, Mando.

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Hello There

Well, one of the Jedi’s greatest enemies was supposedly the Madalorians. Deathstroke is one of the closest DC has to that. So, he was bound to swap hands with Anakin at some point.

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Disclaimer: I own nothing except my original ideas. All credit goes to their respective owners.

Note: All chapters will eventually be posted on public forums.

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Thank you for reading.

As always, stay awesome.

Until next time, Light's out.