Axel collapsed instantly into unconsciousness. Kara didn't look angry at all, as though she had expected it, but offered a strangely nostalgic smile instead.
Beside them, Selina perched on the edge of the bed, eyes sharp, voice low.
"What's your relationship with Axel?"
"A hell of a lot closer than the kind of casual nonsense you think you're entitled to, you idiot," Kara snapped with contempt, then exhaled a blast of icy air toward Axel.
In the next instant, Axel's head froze solid before Kara brutally smashed it to pieces.
"Holy crap!"
In a flash of fire, Axel reappeared, shouting and cursing.
"What time is it? Why the hell are you waking me up so damn early?!"
"Because Doctor Fate is about to make his move, Axel," Kara replied, irritation plain in her voice.
Axel ruffled his hair in annoyance.
"Of course... I knew this would happen. You only show up right before trouble. And why do these so‑called heroes always pick the middle of the night? Don't they ever sleep? Damn annoying!"
For the first time since waking, his eyes glowed a dangerous red, bloodshot and furious.
He exhaled sharply, rubbed his eyes, then fixed Kara with a hard stare.
"Where are Barry and Constantine?"
"I didn't want to deal with that trash Constantine, so I sent Barry to track him down. Unless he messed up, they should be on their way," Kara answered before turning her gaze toward the distance.
Diana was flying over Gotham from high above, heading straight for Wayne Tower.
Axel inhaled slowly, expression cold.
"Go. Bring me her right hand."
"As you command."
Kara smiled briefly, then tore through the sky toward Diana.
Diana was approaching Wayne Tower alongside Doctor Fate. As she flew, every hair on her body suddenly stood on end.
"What the hell?"
Startled, she turned to her left. Before she could brace herself, Kara appeared in her vision and delivered a devastating kick to her chest.
Boom.
The shockwave tore through the sky, interrupting the flight of Diana, Doctor Fate, and Zatanna. All they saw was Diana and another figure, too fast to track, vanishing into the clouds.
Boom.
The clouds above Gotham cracked open.
Boom.
Flocks of birds fell from the rupturing sky.
Boom.
"AAAH!"
With Diana screaming, the red‑and‑blue blur shot away, leaving Diana plummeting toward the ground, her shoulder bleeding heavily.
Doctor Fate vanished beside her and used his powers to staunch the wound, while Zatanna, trembling, spoke up.
"What was that… a plane? I didn't see anything… how was that even possible?"
"That was someone with an S on her chest! I got ambushed before I even knew what hit me!" Diana growled, teeth clenched as she stood, divine energy knitting her wound back together.
Once the bleeding stopped and her arm healed, she strapped on her shield, drew her longsword, and warned, "Be careful. Axel isn't the only threat. He's got powerful allies."
With her eyes burning red, Diana charged toward where Kara had gone.
---
In front of Roxie Bar in London, Barry hesitated before stepping inside. His stomach twisted with nerves.
A flamboyantly cheerful man at the entrance greeted him.
"Hey friend, you've come all this way. Don't hold back now! We've got fun ahead, not misery behind us. So come in! Got someone in mind you wanna find?"
Barry forced a weak smile, though he wanted to say no.
"I'm looking for John Constantine. Do you know him?"
"John? Of course! He's the star of this place!" the man laughed, clapping Barry on the back. "Follow me, he'll be having a blast with some generous friends."
He dragged Barry through the bar to a private room pulsing with loud sounds and heavy breathing. Barry stopped at the door, uneasy.
"Are you sure he's here? I mean, what if we're interrupting something?"
"It's his room, don't worry," the man assured him, knocking loudly.
"John? Someone handsome and new is here to play!"
"Let him in!" came a voice that didn't sound like Constantine at all.
The man pushed the door open, only for Barry to stare in disbelief.
"Damn it, Constantine, why did I even come here?! My eyes!"
"What did you say?" the blond man inside paused.
"Hey buddy, you here to join?"
Barry took a step back, confused and grossed out. That wasn't John Constantine.
"I'm not here for this! Constantine, we need to go. Something big is happening!"
"But I am Constantine. Who are you talking to?" the blond man said, annoyed.
Barry pointed to another man in the room.
"Why is he also Constantine? What the hell is going on?"
The blond man blinked, then turned to the other man.
"Wait, didn't you tell me your name was Terunsu?"
"Yes," the dark‑haired man said, lighting a cigarette.
"Just because you say that doesn't make it true," he smirked.
The dark man stood, brushing past both of them.
"Come on, Barry, we've got work to do. After this, God might finally toss this bastard into Heaven, and maybe I won't have to get chased by Satan anymore! And hey, blondie," he nudged the other man's shoulder, "Don't be bummed. You're still the greatest liar alive, because only we can fool ourselves."
He grabbed his coat and led a bewildered Barry out of the bar.
As they walked, the dark Constantine leaned in and whispered in Barry's ear.
"Quick, let's make a run for it!"
Before Barry could ask what he meant, they vanished and reappeared in Gotham City in an instant.
Inside the bar, the blond Constantine ran his hands through his hair.
"Damn it!"
He laughed to himself.
"I'm the most insane bastard alive! I came from another universe and even slept with another version of myself! I thought tricking that old guy Kent was great, but wow... What if I did steal all my artifacts? Ha! I'd have double the good stuff!"
His eyes widened.
"What if I actually did take everything? Not even leaving the one sample of Michael's blood?!"
He drew a magic circle in alarm and vanished back to the House of Mystery with a scream.
"Fck! Fck me! I really did take everything! I'm such a goddamn bastard! Ahhhh!!!"
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