9642/Age of Darkness: Aftermath

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Age of Darkness: Aftermath
Date of Scene: 18 October 2019
Location: Metropolis Military Cemetery, Midvale, New Troy
Synopsis: Green Lantern and Zatanna meet at Superman's Memorial and discuss recent events. Zatanna puts up a protection spell to protect Superman's Memorial, and the two discuss happenings.
Cast of Characters: Green Lantern (Jordan), Zatanna Zatara
Tinyplot: Age of Darkness


Green Lantern (Jordan) has posed:
    It was the next day. The Cemetery was cleaned up, all of the people were all gone, even the sun was leaving behind the horizon. Clouds began to appear, looking dark and forboding. Perhaps now the rain was going to hit with the Memorial all over. Over for most...still ongoing for some.

    Suddenly, a soft emerald light appears on the horizon, just over the lake. It moves closer, ever so closer, slowly but surely. The emerald sphere has a dark figure inside it. Hal Jordan, Green Lantern, was moving towards the statue in the centre of the Cemetery. His face was crestfallen, his eyes red and he was obviously upset.

    Landing in front of the statue of Superman, Hal lets his will go, causing the sphere to dissipate into the air. Moving one step closer, he puts his ring hand on the stone in front of the statue. "Sorry I am late old friend...you know how it is. At least I was up there, saluting your heroism." A pause as Hal looks up at the sky, and the back at Superman."One more fly past."

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
He isn't alone. There are civilians who are there, a handful that arrive and depart, giving their few moments to the man who gave everything. The actions of his last few days were forgotten in the memory of the good he had done for his entire life. There were some who could not let go of such things but they were outnumbered by those who just wished the man in Blue was back amongst them.

There was one woman who had remained there the entire night. She had never left the day before, although she had almost done so. A man in robes with the symbol of Rao had been present at the memorial and she had wanted to follow him. After the behavior of certain childish heroes, she had not dared to leave this pace unprotected. Not until she was able to act again.

Zatanna was wearing a pair of black slacks and a matching bustier, instead of the white she normally preferred. Black pumps on her feet. She was sitting in a lotus position nearby, eyes on the memorial. Not on the grass. Instead, she floated about a foot above it as she waited for her powers to return after the strange pull on them the day before during what should have been a minor spell.

Seeing the glow, she turned her pale blue eyes, also red from the spilling of tears, to focus on Green Lantern. "No one is ever late. We always arrive right on time."

Green Lantern (Jordan) has posed:
    It was like he wasn't seeing anything around him at all. Tunnel vision, which was all on the statue of course. The statue of his friend. As it was, he wasn't looking at anyone else, wasn't looking at the passerby's or the people looking this way now that he was there.

    As it was, when Hal takes a step back, takes a deep breath, and lets it out in a sigh, he does notice someone. Right after she says something. He almost didn't pick out what it was, until he looks her over, his eyes hidden by his mask. All white.

"Zatanna?" A pause, as Hal blinks back the moisture in his eyes. "Zee? Are you okay? I don't know..." Hal pauses, suddenly looking just a touch angry. "Seems like I was late to the party between two of my dearest friends. Now one is dead, and the other..." He stops himself. "I could have stopped this."

    Hal clenches his hand, his ring hand once again, and looks down at it as though he could will it to be.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
She rises into the air, floating up to about the height of a normal chair. Then she unfolds her legs and stands easily. Walking over to him, Zatanna places a hand on his arm.

"No. You couldn't have. I have been meditating on this. A few spells. Trying to figure things out. I was feeling the same way. That I could have prevented this. If I had acted sooner, if I had taken steps that I know will lead to ..." She doesn't finish the sentence, instead shifting back to the topic at hand. "Everything I see says this had to happen. I don't understand it. I don't like it. I just know that sometimes, no matter how much we try, things will be as they should."

She glances to the memorial, folding her arms over her stomach and staring up at the statute. "Every vision I saw, even had we been here, it would've ended the same." He might notice a few horizontal slices on her left forearm. Something she didn't heal for some reason. Those that know such things would recognize signs of blood magic. She had used hers to try to look at the past. And the future. "But I can't see what is going to happen. I am blinded, no matter the spells I use." She glances over at him again. "I tried right after it happened, before the Memorial. It's all covered in a gray mist or shifting so rapidly, I can't pinpoint."

Green Lantern (Jordan) has posed:
    Hal Jordan looks up as Zatanna places her hand on his arm. Letting his clenched fist release, he shrugs, and looks at the statue, while resting his hand on hers for a moment. "Thank you. That...yeah, I know. I..." Stumbling over his words, the normally self-assurred, self confident Hal Jordan seems just a touch unsure.

    "This had to happen." His white eyes look at Zatanna, deep into her eyes for several seconds, and then, subtly, nods. "I guess." Hal sighs again. "Doesn't make it any easier."

    Hal turns his attention to the statue, and says, "I know what kind of toll that takes on a magic wielder, Zee. I know you did your best. But that sounds to me like something else is going on. You are blinded? One of the most powerful magic users I know?" Hal Jordan's frown, if possible, went darker.

    "I don't know. Something is wrong. I can smell it. Superman killed? That whole mess with Apokolips last year? It just doesn't add up to me. And what you are telling me, makes it feel even more like we are being manipulated. Are they targeting us? I've been so busy in Space, what with my battles and the War...was that all a plan of someone else?"

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"I wish I had answers. I don't." Zatanna is trying everything in her power to figure it out and the blind dead ends were frustrating. Usually she could get somewhere when tapping into blood magic or the like. She hadn't gone Dark. That was the one step she had not taken.

Yet.

"There is something else at work here. I don't know what it was. Yesterday, at the Memorial ceremony, there was an incident. Robin is angry, hurt, upset over Batman. He vandalized the statue during the ceremony. Tore the head off. I used my magic to restore it but, when I did, something drew most of my magic out of me. As though I had cast a major spell instead of something rather minor."

She frowned, looking down at where her hand still rested on his arm. Then up, her blue eyes showing the concern she felt. "I felt a sense of...hope. When it happened. I don't know what it was, what it means."

She looks over at the monument. "There was a man here, with the symbol of Rao on his chest, wearing robes. I had wanted to follow him but I didn't dare leave the memorial unattended. Vandals or worse, graverobbers, villains. Too much to leave it unprotected, thus I remained. I wanted to wait until my magic was built up again, to allow me to put protective spells here."

Green Lantern (Jordan) has posed:
    "Hmmm. I don't either. I need to spend more time on Earth I think. Ever since the Guardians promoted me to the frickin' Honor Guard, I can never get home. I had to take compassionate leave to come here for this funeral and memorial service." Hal Jordan shakes his head.

    "Well, I'm here." Hal looks at Zatanna and listens to her for a second, with a quizzical, then angry expression. "Robin should know better. Wait. Which Robin? There are like three or four of them. Not Dick..." His eyes move sideways, to make sure no one was listening to them.

    Hal was about to continue, when something Zatanna says hits him. "Wait...major spell? From a repair job? That makes no sense. Not sure what the hope thing means. I'm not really a magic kind of guy, although I do work with one in the Corps. Huh. Was there something about the spell itself out of the ordinary?" Hal takes a moment, and thinks about it, while Zee describes the man and the rest.

    "Good idea Zee. You shouldn't strain yourself. Especially if what you say has happened. This place needs protection from people who would steal...wait..." Another pause. "...did you say, Rao?" Hal blinks.

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
Raising her right hand, Zatanna scetched a symbol in the air. "Ycavirp." Nothing happens but from that point on, they will not be heard by anyone that comes near them. If someone were trying to spy visually to read lips, they would find their vision blurred as though looking through smoked glass, but only at that area of the duo. She was taking nothing for granted at this point.

"Robin I believe will be Damian. He mentioned that Batman was his father. Not sure that was the wisest of choices but the boy is understandably distraught." Zatanna tilts her head up at the memorial the boy had attacked in lieu of the man it represented.

When Hal continues, she listens and nods faintly at his assurance about not straining too much. Until the other part sinks in. She turns to focus on his face once more. "Indeed. It was the symbol of Rao. He was tall. Never saw a face as he had robes on and a hood. I am hoping once I finish the spell here, I may be able to pick up traces to follow him. I mean, I know Rao was a Kryptonian god but how many people would wear his symbol that were not Kryptonian? I did not see Superboy present during the Memorial itself but that doesn't mean it was him. Supergirl and Power Girl were not here either but I am quite sure it wasn't one of them, since the form seemed masculine."

Green Lantern (Jordan) has posed:
    Hal smiles, and waves a hand at Zatanna's spell. "Nice trick. Could use that myself..." Then, he takes a look at his ring, gets a thoughtful look on his face, and then smiles, returning his eyes back to Zee. "Good idea too. I think I caught what you said. Privacy right?" Hal smiles, and crosses his arms across his chest. Ring finger up.

    "Damian." There went the smile, as quick as it appears. "I told him (Batman) he would be trouble a few years ago. Now look. He actually mentioned that Bats was...a smart bad guy will put two and two together, stupid kid. He needs to stop letting anger control him, and get some control. Before it back fires on him."

    Now, alot of what Hal said was just anger that Damian would do such a thing. Another is that he has a few of those kids in the GLC.

    "I've had to bury a few of those kids lately, fighting this damn War of Light. Kids like that. Control, focus, push the anger aside, until you can use it. Will is the way to do it. Tough lesson to have to learn." Hal nods.

    "Rao. I know of this name. There is a cult, both Kryptonians and Daxamites have it. He's their God, like you say. Even spilled over into a few other sectors, like the Citadel. Strange there would be one of them here. Especially out in the open at the Memorial. Hmmm." Hal listens. "Then, if not one of them, and he was masculine...who could it be?" Hal steps back, and says, "Right! Spell! Sorry, here I am, talking you to distraction."

Zatanna Zatara has posed:
"I'm sorry things are going badly out there. If there is anything I can do to help, please don't hesitate to ask. I may not be a Lantern, but I have a few tricks up my sleeve." Zatanna glances down at her arm. "When I have sleeves."

As he gives her the space, she gives a nod and moves away from him by a few feet. She begins to draw the energy into herself, finding her power is more than adequate but wishing to keep from taxing her personal reserves. That is when ley lines were handy. She allowed the power to build as she raised her hands to the air. Intricate movements left glowing runes behind. It wasn't a thing she had to do but she found it sometimes helped the focus. It also was a secondary style of magic, giving a double whammy on the spells themselves. Or at least she believed them to. And thus, they did. That was the nature of her spells, her belief and mental vision.

As the runes begin to glow more brightly, Zatanna's eyes go solid white. Her hair begins to lift and move as though by a strong wind, though there was none. "Od on mrah."

The runes expanded suddenly, turning into a circular dome that even went underground to protect from below. It was emanating a white light for a moment then it disappeared.

Her eyes went back to normal and her hair fell back around her shoulders. "There. If someone wants to put flowers on the memorial, they will be fine. If they try anything negative, as I interpret it, it will capture their image and I will receive a vision to know who they are. They will also find themselves teleported to Grand Central Station."

Green Lantern (Jordan) has posed:
    Hal Jordan smiles, then chuckles, lightly. "Thank you Zee. I'll keep you in mind for the next recruiting drive. I'll let you know if I need any Sorcery assistance. I expect I probably will sooner or later." Hal moves back from the statue and looks up at the Man of Steel's outstretched arms.

    The energy that Zanatanna draws on, he can feel it. The ring vibrates slightly, as though sensing the energy being called forth. Sending a calming shot of will down his arm, Hal turns his head to watch as Zatanna performs her magic. Not saying a word, he watches as the spell is cast.

    "Grand Central Station. Well, that is a good choice." Hal shakes his head. "Nice work Zee. I must say, it is a good feeling to know we have that here, protecting the memorial." Hal pauses, looks at Zatanna, and says, "Thank you. From all of us."