Sell you a Bridge chapter 133

Doomhollow Hall December 13th 2010 11:00 PM EDT

The  next morning was...quiet. Artemis didn't seem to hold my decision  against me, nor did Reggie, but from their auras I could tell they were  giving me space after the ordeal. It would have been a much bigger deal  without Zee there to keep me grounded and I was grateful for my girl.  Sex was only part of it, the genuine connection and love she showed me  made it clear that she was with me for the long haul, assuming I didn't  turn into a serial killer.

On top of that she had  officially discovered a new method to give me points. Another full ten  thousand dropped into my lap, bringing me up to twenty thousand total.  Hearing about how I'd been able to internalize the power from monkey  boy's golden blast had clearly given her some ideas and my beloved  girlfriend had taken them and run during our time together last night.  It had obviously worked out since I had more points now than I could  ever remember having at one time.

The knowledge of at  least two methods to produce massive amounts of points, one of which was  easily repeatable and definitely enjoyable, was a game changer for me.  The method I'd figured out during the fight was a big deal, sure, but at  the same time it was obviously dangerous and involved getting attacked  by powerful energy blasts at the very least. Zee's on the fly tantric  ritual was repeatable and very pleasant so it was definitely the better  option.

The morning, however, wasn't an uneventful one.  Jim had called us all together to talk to use about something important.  It seemed like he'd been doing some snooping on his own when he'd been  out and about, and he'd figured some things out. Madame Xanadu and Blood  were there with him when we arrived and that definitely made me sit up  and take notice. Madame X was one thing but Blood would never work with  Jim unless it was important.

When we showed up in the map  room Jim gestured for us to sit before starting to fill us in. "So. I've  been looking around for a while, trying to figure out something that  doesn't make sense." His voice was subdued and pensive. "What was the  point of all this? Sure having an army of gods at her beck and call  seems like a viable motive, and it might even be what she told the  Amazons, but Circe isn't the type of person to do all this to enrich  others."

He clicked his fingers on the table as he spoke,  and his tone was wandering, as if he was trying to figure things out by  talking. " This entire thing is...unlike her. So, operating under the  assumption that we were missing something I've been mapping the edges of  the barrier spell and studying it's layout. I suspected it might give  me some kind of insight into what she plans to do with the city if I  could determine the parameters of the containment."

Madame  Xanadu spoke up. "We'd been doing our own investigation of that very  thing, so we were able to compare notes." She nodded to me. "Thank you  for access to the teleport network by the way, it's unspeakably  convenient. In any case we all three had the same thought, and when we  compared notes we realized some...unfortunate things. Specifically that  the purpose of this bubble isn't what it seems to be."

Jim  sighed. "We don't know all of it, but we've been able to figure out a  few things. First off, Circe is in here with us. We don't know where, or  even why, but the method used to raise the shield would require her  presence inside it's radius. Secondly it isn't meant to keep things out,  at least not entirely, it's meant to keep out attention. It's a giant  anti scrying ward first and foremost, so whatever she's doing in here  she doesn't want anyone to know about."

Jim's face, which  was visible in his human guise, twisted with worry. "I can't begin to  tell you how worrisome that is. Circe has been operating with impunity  for literal millennia without worrying about being noticed. Whatever the  purpose of this endeavor is it must be something she believes would  alienate or enrage the entire Greek pantheon. The list of things that  could do so is short, but extremely unpleasant."

I  furrowed my brow. "That isn't ideal, no. But could you tell anything  else? A ritual that big should do more than just act like a magic signal  jammer right? Well, I guess it also keeps out unwanted pests but you  made it sound like there was more than just a little information in the  setup." The idea that the mad goddess with the evil magic book I'd  retrieved was running around inside the invincible bubble with us was  not comforting in the least.

Sadly the answer I was hoping  for wasn't forthcoming. Jim just shook his head. "Nothing specific. It  holds in power, which means theoretically the density of supernatural  energy in the city should be growing exponentially by the day but isn't.  That means she's using it for something, but we don't know what. The  energy from the curse that plagues Gotham is exceptionally high quality,  it has nearly endless uses."

I nodded absently. "Sure,  that's the reason she arranged the Labyrinth to end up her to start  with, but I'm curious how it does her any good. Circe is already a god,  why would she care about ascension, it's not like she can ascend twice."  The three older magic users all froze, then as one turned to stare at  each other in horror. Jim bolted from his chair over to the map, poring  over the images.

Madame Xanadu and Blood were right behind  him, both looking terrified by something, and I absolutely did not love  that. I cleared my throat. "Excuse me. We were talking? What's with the  freak out? What did I say?" If Circe could actually become a double god  I was seriously going to lose my shit. I'd had about enough of that  ascension nonsense to last a lifetime.

Despite  my prompting the three of them continued to pour over the map. The  zoomed in and out, checking random angles and distances and muttering  about arcane parameters in complex lines of questioning that might as  well have been gibberish for how well I understood any of it. I looked  to Zee quizzically but she just shrugged, clearly not following whatever  their jargon was either...which was concerning in a whole other way.

Finally  I got fed up waiting and clapped my hands sharply, loudly startling the  trio out of their reverie. "As fun as it is to be set dressing while  the three of you mumble unknowable arcane secrets, perhaps you'd like to  share exactly what has you all so agitated instead of giving us all  hear attacks from panic." I saw Reggie pretend to scratch his face to  hide a smile as Artemis just openly snickered at my insouciance.

Jim  took a deep breath. "Ah, yes. Apologies. Your comment earlier about a  second ascension. It's both inaccurate and potentially very feasible. We  were studying the distribution of ley lines in the area as they relate  to certain key locations the Amazon's seem to have congregated near, and  we came to some very troubling conclusions. We hadn't considered the  possibility before so we weren't looking until you mentioned it."

I  opened my mouth, but seeing my impatience my mentor held up his hands.  "Peace, my boy. I'm getting to it. This one requires a bit of context.  What do you know about the Sphere of the Gods?" I stared blankly at him  and he rolled his eyes. "Right, I forget how young you all are on  occasion. The Sphere of the Gods is...in some ways it's a place, and in  some ways it's a force. Gods derive their power from it."

Madame  Xanadu spoke up. "Not exactly, more that gods are a part of the sphere.  It's one of the building blocks of our reality and the force from which  all magic springs, technically speaking we're always within the Sphere,  but though it is omnipresent in certain fashions it also exists in a  physical sense in certain frequencies of reality. The beings that reside  there are the New Gods."

Jim  waved her off. "Explaining the metaphysics of the multiverse would take  to long. Think of it as another reality that exists on top of all the  known universes in the multiverse. Places like Olympus and Asgard are  sort of...weak spots between the Sphere and this reality, but aren't  truly IN it. The so called 'fourth world' is an incredibly mystical  place where tombs of the old gods and some of the greatest power in the  multiverse can be found."

He  gestured to the map. "Which is what your comment reminded us of. We  checked the placement of the Amazon forces and Circe may very well be  attempting to use Gotham's abundance of high quality energy to ascend to  the Sphere of the Gods with the Labyrinth as a focus. The Labyrinth was  designed to allow ascension outside godly notice, and as such as a  loophole in the normal system. Circe is a lesser deity, but if she  ascends with the Labyrinth she may become an equal to the New Gods."

I  grimaced at the idea of Circe with even more power than she already  had. She hadn't been awful or anything but I had not gotten a stable  vibe from the evil goddess, and finding out she had been secretly  puppeteering the eventual fall of the city I lived in in a machiavellian  plot to ascend to a higher plane and become all powerful definitely  didn't help my impression of her.

Artemis  broke the silence that followed that statement. "I mean, fuck that  right?" We all looked at her. "What? I can't be the only person here who  wants to make sure that bitch crashes and burns. I don't even care  about her becoming powerful or whatever, she totally fucked us. I  definitely not going to sit and watch while she accomplishes all her  goals and becomes even harder to deal with."

Reggie  snorted out a laugh. "Hate to say it but I agree with Arty. Fuck her.  My family suffered because of her bullshit Labyrinth stunt." He turned  to look at Jim. "Do we know where the hell this ascension will be taking  place? I seriously hope it's not in the Labyrinth because honestly the  idea of having to grind our way through that whole thing again is just  the least fun thing I can possibly imagine doing."

Jim  snorted. "No. I'm afraid not. In point of fact I wish it was. Part of  our calculations were to find out exactly where it would be taking  place, and we believe we've narrowed it down to here." He gestured a  spot on the map, showing us with intersecting lines exactly which ley  lines and magical forces intersected and along what paths based on where  the Amazons were stationed.

I  looked down at the map and back up at him. "You've got to be fucking  kidding me." I glared at the spot on the map. "We just sent the Leaguers  to secure it, no way they missed her there." I couldn't help but  shudder at the idea of going back to Arkham after my last visit. The  place just straight up gave me the creeps, even if I hadn't had to deal  with my psychopath uncle.

Jim  sighed. "If only it were that simple. Circe is a master of disguise,  her magic is excellent at helping her blend in. I doubt anyone save  perhaps Wonder Woman would recognize her, and the Amazonian Princess is  outside the city." He chuckled, smiling darkly as he gestured to the  spot on the map where all the lines intersected. "I suspect we're  looking at a relatively short timeline, so we should make our way there  post haste." He stood. "So who's up for a field trip?"