"Fuck!!!"
Behind Bruce, Alfred was so startled that the gun in his hand slipped and clattered onto the floor.
Bruce's face instantly turned green. He spun around and frantically waved his hands at Alfred.
"I am not, I did not, I...!"
"Save it," Constantine said with a chuckle, cutting him off. "Right now we still need to help the Boss defend Wayne Tower. After tonight, we can sit down and have a very long conversation about whatever the hell that was."
He waved toward Barry.
"Come on, Barry. Take me to Wayne Tower. If nothing goes wrong, the guy God himself is nervous about should be there."
Constantine sighed while rubbing his chin.
"Honestly, the only reason I even want Heaven is because it keeps me away from Lucifer and the rest of those psychos. But even Heaven sucks. Angels barely let you have any fun, and the moment you try something interesting, boom, black wings."
He grinned.
"So if God is wary of this guy, then Lucifer probably can't mess with him either. After this job, I might ask him for career advice."
Barry nodded immediately.
"Got it."
He grabbed Constantine by the shoulders. In the next instant, both men dissolved into lightning and vanished from the room.
Bruce stared at the empty space they left behind and swallowed.
"Damn it. This world is completely screwed. Completely!"
He jumped out the window without hesitation and rushed toward the Rolls-Royce Cullinan parked outside.
Watching him leave, Selina frowned.
"Does he really think he can help?"
Alfred picked up his pistol and answered calmly.
"You heard what was said. After Barbatos took control of the world, only Gotham's worst troublemakers dared to fight back."
He checked the weapon.
"And Master Bruce has never stopped charging into impossible fights. Every one of us in Gotham is a little insane."
He turned toward Selina.
"Madam, please head to the shelter beneath the Manor. I will bring Mrs. Rachel. Pack what you need and meet me in the Master's study."
"I understand."
Selina nodded and hurried off.
Moments later, while passing a window, she froze.
Outside, Diana hovered in the air facing Kara, golden light surrounding her body while Kara's red cape snapped violently behind her.
Diana rolled her shoulder. Flesh regenerated rapidly where her arm had been severed, restoring itself within seconds. She clenched her new hand tightly.
"Where is my right hand?!"
Kara answered coldly, already charging forward.
"With Axel. He likes it way too much."
She slammed directly into Diana.
The impact blasted Diana out of the sky and into the ground below. Dirt and stone exploded across Wayne Manor's yard as Diana was forced backward, carving a deep trench through the earth.
Bruce's car sped past the destroyed ground. He stared in shock for half a second before accelerating away.
Kara sneered.
"Fragile divine power."
She drove Diana into the ground and punched downward.
Boom.
Nearly a third of the Manor grounds rippled like boiling water from the impact. Diana's head snapped sideways before she suddenly stretched her hand outward.
Far above Wayne Tower, the Bracelets of Submission shot through the sky as beams of light racing back toward her.
Elsewhere, Axel grinned while casually patting the severed arm he carried.
Doctor Fate landed in front of him, clearly shaken as he stared at Diana's arm in Axel's grasp.
Taking a slow breath, Doctor Fate spoke.
"How did the Hero King of the past become this monster today? Nimrod, did Purgatory break you so completely that you now wish to return that suffering to the world?"
Axel blinked, then rolled his eyes.
"Nimrod my ass. Who the hell are you talking to?"
Doctor Fate sneered.
"Angry because your identity has been exposed?"
Axel clicked his tongue.
"You mages really love hearing yourselves talk."
Doctor Fate formed a complex hand sign. Instantly, countless copies of him split away, flooding Wayne Tower and teleporting civilians outside.
Lucius Fox suddenly found himself lifted out of his laboratory and placed safely on the street. Watching dozens of Doctor Fates floating around the tower while crystalline structures sealed the building, he muttered to himself that the world had officially lost its mind.
News helicopters circled overhead.
"The situation has dramatically changed," a reporter announced live. "Doctor Fate appears to be attacking Wayne Tower, while the Wraith is now defending Gotham."
Doctor Fate looked back at Axel.
"I already know who you are. Denial changes nothing. When I chose to destroy Wayne Tower, I was uncertain. But when you arrived with allies to stop us, I understood. This tower must be part of your ritual."
He continued calmly.
"Ancient king, abandon this ambition. When God destroyed the Tower of Babel, there was reason. No matter how many towers you build, you cannot reclaim the past."
Axel raised his middle finger.
"Go screw yourself."
He stepped forward.
"You ever notice how people like you assume the universe runs on your opinions? Yeah, I've heard of the Tower of Babel. My history grades sucked, but even I know Nimrod built it."
He shrugged.
"But what the hell does that have to do with me?"
Axel vanished.
He reappeared directly in front of Doctor Fate, his hand thrust straight into where Fate's heart should have been.
Nothing.
His fingers closed around empty air.
Doctor Fate calmly drifted forward, passing straight through Axel's body.
"This is no illusion," Fate said. "This is my true state. I have survived many enemies. You are hardly the first to reach for my heart, and certainly not the last."
Axel clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"Yeah, yeah."
He swung Diana's severed arm like a club straight at Doctor Fate's face.
It passed through harmlessly.
Axel narrowed his eyes.
"So even divine power can't hit you. Not particle control. You hid yourself inside destiny itself. That's annoying as hell."
Doctor Fate nodded slightly.
"Your insight remains impressive. Unfortunately, you currently lack the means to harm me. I do not hate you, but your age has ended. The modern world no longer requires your rule."
He flicked his wrist.
The destiny crystals surrounding Wayne Tower began dissolving.
Then his expression suddenly changed.
"This... what is happening?"
A column of holy light descended from the sky, engulfing Wayne Tower.
Blue lightning struck nearby as Barry arrived with Constantine.
Constantine laughed and tossed a bundle of cloth onto the ground.
"The Holy Shroud of Jesus. Might not stop a lunatic swinging knives, but it blocks magical and psychic interference from anyone who thinks they're smarter than everyone else."
He dug through his coat again and threw down a glowing blue pocket watch.
"Castiel's Pocket Watch. Stops destiny tracking. Most of your cosmic tricks just became useless."
Another item followed.
"A cigar Lucifer smoked himself. Limited edition, demon-stained. Temporarily shuts down dark magic."
One after another, strange relics hit the ground. A scarab sealed in glass, a broken stone fragment etched with ancient symbols, and a silver spearhead marked with immortal blood.
Constantine looked up and waved at Zatanna, who was falling rapidly from the sky.
"Sorry, Zatanna. I turned the area into a full anti-magic zone. No flying allowed."
She screamed while dropping toward the ground.
Right before impact, she shouted,
"Home!"
She vanished instantly.
Constantine blinked.
"Oh. Right. Backward magic works differently."
He scratched his head, then pulled out one final object, a statue depicting a man hanging upside down.
"The Hanged Man. Should've used this earlier."
He grinned at Axel.
"Now it's perfect. Absolute anti-magic territory. Nothing mystical gets in anymore, Boss."
===
Look up "_Zeph" on Patreon to get access to chapters in advance.