Darkest Before The Dawn [Invited]

[Batman]

Players: Green Lantern, Black Canary, Damian Wayne
Location(s): Underground
Plot Summary: Damian leads the Justice League underground in a frantic attempt to save Batman before the sun rises.

The sewers under Gotham City were a massive interconnecting maze that were nearly as large as Gotham City itself. When the massive earthquake had nearly obliterated Gotham City the sewers had collapsed into a sinkhole that had nearly decimated the city. The sewers had been rebuilt enough so that they could adequately take care of the city’s waste but some parts were still collapsed. In recent months the sewers had become a home to cultists and those who could no longer live the harsh reality of the city above ground. Luckily enough for these people and denizens like Killer Croc the records and maps of the sewers had been destroyed during the events of No Man’s Land. Unluckily for them the Bat-Computer had a partially completed map of the massive interconnecting tunnels that had turned into a dwelling place for criminals. It had been this map that Damian had used to locate his mentor.

The flames that engulfed Gotham City and the riots throughout Gotham City didn’t bother Damian Al-Ghul. All that he was truly worried about was the man who had taken him in and trusted him. Damian truly believed that he had lived up to his trust. Now all he had to do was prove that he was capable of saving him. Naturally this wasn’t going to affect his attitude towards other people. The only person that Damian even considered being nice to was Alfred. Alfred had made it fairly clear that he could outsmart Damian on his worst day. Damian didn’t wish to test him. Yet he wasn’t too sure about the people he had been assigned to guide through the sewers. Tim would have done it himself but he was busy quelling riots. So after speaking to Green Lantern and Black Canary on the side (Damian could only guess he was explaining that Damian would be leading this expedition) they had agreed to let him lead them through the sewers.

Damian was aware of Dinah Lance’s reputation and as a result trusted her. He couldn’t say the same for Green Lantern. As far as he was concerned the man was a thuggish intergalactic space cop. Sure, his ring was interesting but Damian knew he had the better-suited imagination to wield it. Damian pulled his hood up over his head as he leaned against a pillar staring at the manhole where Black Canary and Green Lantern would be arriving through. They were late. Common sense told him that they were saving lives. Yet to Damian Dick Grayson was far more important than the constant rabble. As a result there was no excuse for him having to wait here fifteen minutes longer than he needed to. So when the green glow reported their arrival Damian stepped into the shadows and crossed his arms over his chest as he waited for them to arrive. As they landed Damian decided to pull a maneuver Bruce Wayne was well known for. “You’re late.” He stepped behind them; holding his sword in his hand. “Follow me. We don’t have much time.”

With that he walked right past them (pushing his way past Green Lantern as he did) and began to walk down the dark tunnels, trusting them to follow.

[Black Canary]

Dinah had to admit that she hadn't expected her first mission after rejoining the JLA to include rescuing the very person who had recruited her. The part where Gotham was once again going to hell wasn't too shocking; Gotham was a city that embodied the phrase 'expect the unexpected.' It was so unpredictable that it became predictable. The only surprising part about all of this was that someone had actually managed to get the drop on Dick. He was no Bruce, but the kid had been in this business just as long as any of them, if not longer. He wasn't one to go down without one hell of a fight. Dinah had already suited up and run to help with the riots when Red Robin had contacted her and alerted her to the fact that Dick had been abducted. A Boy Hostage would always be a Boy Hostage, it appeared.

It hadn't taken long to get both herself and John Stewart organized and on their way to meet the newest Robin. It would be interesting, meeting him; Dinah had heard the horror stories but never interacted with the boy herself. It wasn't like rumors could be completely believed - superheroes gossiped worse than high school girls - but considering he was Bruce's son, there were a few that she would definitely buy. She would definitely believe that she and John could count on him to lead them through the labyrinth beneath Gotham City. No one received the title of Robin without earning it, whether they were related by blood to Bruce Wayne or not.

Thanks to the Green Lantern Express, reaching the designated meeting point took only a few minutes. Dinah stepped over to the manhole and peered down into the sewer below before expertly dropping in. Her boots met with the grimy surface beneath, and she straightened, looked to John, and then peered around the interior of the sewer. The crazy cultists could never set up shop somewhere a little better smelling, could they? Only a moment after they had arrived, the boy's voice echoed slightly in the tunnel around them. Dinah turned, and in the light provided from the manhole entrance and John's ring, the masked boy became visible.

If the situation wasn't so serious, Dinah would have burst out laughing. Damian was a miniature version of Bruce. There were some features that were distinctly al Ghul, but the Wayne influence almost drowned them out. The boy had the same intense look on his face as Bruce, the same stance, the same curt manner of speech, everything. Obviously Dinah hadn't known Bruce when he was Damian's age, but she could imagine that they weren't very different. The sword in Damian's hand was enough to keep the laughter and squeals at bay, however, as was the fact that he absolutely spoke the truth; they didn't have much time. She cast a brief "can you believe that?" look at John before following after Damian. "How far down is he located?" Dinah asked. These sewers were easy to get lost in, and even if they knew exactly where they were going, it could take a while to reach wherever Dick was being kept.

[John Stewart]

Gotham was being burned to the ground, riots breaking out everywhere, and where was it's protector? Kidnapped. The story of this poor city was a tale as old as time it would seem, to the Green Lantern flying overhead any bad news from or about the city of Gotham was business as usual. The Titans and Justice League (that was currently in reformation mode yet again after the joke of Hal and Green Arrow had put together) were on scene to counter act the cultists behind this latest attack on Gotham City.

Being one of the lasts one on scene was not something John was used to, but today was not one fo those days to sit around and take a leisurely stroll into the battlegrounds below. Immediately he began to generate several fire trucks to put out burning buildings and car fires. No sooner had he put out two of the bigger wildfires had he recieved a call from Red Robin informing him of the situation and the role that the Green Lantern was expected to play. He was not one for babysitting, but he had to pick up Black Canary on the way to meet up with the new Robin (apparently Bruce's son Damian) to go save Batman. Truly he was in a paradox of his own thoughts, but he agreed knowing there was little time. Though, he wanted to argue that he was better suited for the current situation, there was no telling what the cultists were packing.

"You called for a cab?" John cracked muselessly as he arrived on scene where Black Canary was fighting some criminals. By that he meant she had already dealt with them. Generating his bubble around her he lifted them both up and traveled to the location that Red Robin had pointed out to them. Lowering down into the manhole he slowly let his shield dissipate from sight so that Black Canary could roam freely. He started to use his ring as a flashlight immediately, but they did not have to wait long for the young Robin to make his overly dramatic entrance.

As the kid spoke his peace and pushed through John, it took all his mental restraint not to stand his ground so that Robin would of found his butt on the ground. There were bigger fish to fry on this night, namely that he was watching what this kid was made of. He did not know what Black Canary knew or even thought of this boy, but he wanted to see some things for himself. So with a shrug in reply to Dinah's look he followed close behind them moving his ring hand from side to side to light the way. "What do we know about these Cultists so far?" he asked a follow up question after Black Canary had asked hers. All he knew was Dick had been captured by a cult that seemingly worshipped his very existence and had let a bunch of villains out of Arkham Asylum to reek havok on the City.

[Batman]

Damian wasn’t certain what annoyed him more. The fact that he had to rescue Grayson from his own stupidity or the fact that he had to do it with other people. Damian wasn’t naïve. Deep down he knew that he needed help to rescue his mentor. The cultists had been skilled enough to get the drop on his mentor. If it had been any other group Damian was confident that he would have been able to drop in and rescue Grayson on his own. When he had seen the scene of Grayson’s kidnapping it had become clear to him that these cultists were as skilled as any common member of the League of Assassins. What was worst was that they were driven by a demonic entity and powered by magic. This source of power was something that the Bat-Family didn’t fully understand. They were so driven by logic and science that encountering anyone with magical abilities tended to end in disaster unless they had an outside source for help.

This was why Damian needed help no matter how much he didn’t like it. He had to begrudgingly admit that Dinah deserved his respect. She had defeated Talia Al Ghul in open combat with ease and had survived a fight with Lady Shiva. Both of those feats were no easy task. While one would expect Damian to hate someone capable of defeating his mother that wasn’t the case in this situation. Dinah had proven herself to be an honorable woman and even Talia Al Ghul respected her. As far as this Green Lantern figure Damian wasn’t sure what to think about him. Apparently the man was wielding a powerful weapon that very few humans were capable of using. All Damian wanted to do was steal the weapon and see if he himself was worthy. He was absolutely certain that he was.

For a few moments the only sound that permeated the sewers was the sound of feet trudging through mud. Then Dinah broke the silence. Her question was straight forward and simple. Almost business like. “He is not far. Soon we will run into scouts and the occasional searching party responsible for keeping others away from the ceremony. Once we find them we will be close.” The cultists hadn’t had much time to flee underground. They were relatively close to the surface which meant they were easy to find. They would have to descend even deeper into the sewers but not far enough to where they’d necessarily get lost and have difficulty finding their way. “These cultists are roughly as skilled as the men who trained me at the League of Assassins. Black Canary may know a thing or two about them. However they are powered by something known as chaotic magic and cannot be underestimated. That is all we know.”

Surprisingly enough Damian had nothing snide to say. This was why he preferred working with adults. They didn’t ask annoying questions. The sewers came to an end and they were met with a passageway. Two tunnels. Damian turned left and then turned right. He reached into his utility belt and pulled out a lighter. He then stepped into the left tunnel and lit it. For a moment the flame expanded much further than it normally would before Damian extinguished it. He slipped it back into his utility belt and continued walking. While he strived to look calm on the inside his mind was racing with strategies, theories and emotions. Could they save Grayson in time? Damian wasn’t certain but he would try. He cared about that man far more than he cared to admit. Besides he knew that the cowl would not be passed onto him if Grayson died too early. God forbid it went to Drake.

[Black Canary]

Moments like these made Dinah extremely grateful that her outfit consisted of thick boots that would easily keep any of the foul-smelling mud from reaching her feet. She just wished it was a little easier to walk in; trying to fight with this gunk under her feet wouldn't be easy. It wouldn't be impossible either, but it sure as hell wouldn't be much fun, especially against a group of fighters as skilled as Robin said they were. They had a good group heading to rescue Dick, though. She and Robin were both experienced fighters either at or above the cultist's level, and John wielded the most powerful weapon in the known universe. Needless to say, they weren't going into this unprepared.

Dinah gave a brief nod at Damian's response. She hadn't been aware of this cult's presence - which was actually a little disturbing, as she was typically pretty up-to-speed on groups of skilled fighters - but she was sure she would recognize some of its members once they encountered them. There were few fighters in the world whose skill matched that of League of Assassins members, and among those involved in such a world, their identities were rarely secret. People didn't get that good without someone noticing. Magic, however, she was a lot less familiar with. God only knew how it would alter fighters of that caliber. "Any names I might recognize?" Dinah asked. "Or have they been pretty hush-hush up until this point?" If she knew some of the fighters they would be encountering, it would make her life a lot easier. She spent a great deal of time studying other martial artists, both to enhance her own skills and to familiarize herself with their techniques should she ever have to face them.

It would at least help to know ahead of time what style they preferred, though that much she would eventually find out anyway. Having as much information beforehand would have been nice anyway. Dick was no slouch when it came to martial arts, so Dinah fully believed Robin when he said that they were about at the level of the League of Assassins. They would have to be, to accomplish all of this. Her blue eyes narrowed slightly at the back of Damian's head as they walked. Trained by the League or not, she couldn't say she was thrilled that a child was involved in all of this. While she didn't doubt his qualifications, she had never approved of bringing kids into this world. It wasn't right. She had seen what kind of training Sin would have endured had she stayed in Asia, and she couldn't imagine that the League was any more gentle in their training regiments. Being the sidekick to Batman was definitely a step up, but in some ways, not by much.

[John Stewart]

The kid was overly intense little thing, it almost cracked Johns stoic expression. Had he not been trained by the Marines he probably would of cracked a smile, but these were not laughable times. No, these were serious times. Batman had been captured, there was no time for that. No matter how ridiculous this exact moment was too him. Then again, was it really all that crazy of a situation? Here he was in the sewer with Black Canary and Bruce Wayne and Talia Al Ghul's devil spawn, what better opportunity to see what all the hype was about. Or rather, what all the gossip was about.

"At least we have a starting point..." Green Lantern stated as he looked around the damp surroundings. The search had only just begun and he was already getting one of those nagging feelings that he was being lead into a trap of some kind. This was not a feeling he cared for at all, he was going to have to keep an extra eye out for the minute details (he was sure Dinah was doing the same) as they just let Robin lead them to the ceremony site. He was not sure if the kid was all that reliable yet, but given the circumstances it was not like they could afford to wait for a better one to arrive. Then again, the thought popped into his head that Black Canary was a double member (Birds of Prey and Justice League). So why could she not ask Oracle for help? Though he did notice the rest of the Birds of Prey were busy fighting in the streets of Gotham.

The opponents seemed to fit Black Canary and Robin's talents for the most part, but then the last part was added to make Green Lantern glad he had gotten the call. Chaotic magic was no joke. While he was not Doctor Fate, Captain Marvel, or even Zatanna he did understand the effects that chaotic magic had on things. Let alone people. With the few run ins he had with people using Chaotic magic they turned out to be a real pain, he still came out on top but he had to work for it. If these guys were skilled fighters with the addition of chaotic magic there was no telling if they were getting physical amplifiers or weapon enhancements. Or worse yet, both.

New Direction broke John out of his own thoughts after Robin had pulled out a lighter to check the two tunnels. Left had won which way they would be going. It took every bit of his patience to not just pull up an energy road map of this place using various different methods of tracking, but in the end they could not afford to lose what little element of surprise that they did have. This cause him to lower his body shield glow to a dim setting, still on alert but not quite as bright as before. He could not allow anyone to have the jump on his body even down here.

[Batman]

The reason why the flame from the lighter had expanded was because there had been trace fluids in this particular tunnel that only exacerbated the flame. Damian was convinced that they were going to burn Grayson alive. Not with any common type of lighter fluid either. They were going to do this as extravagantly as possible and that was where Damian’s strength lied. Their sacrifice demanded sanctity and patience. Something that the cultists had in abundance. The moment they dropped the lighter or the trigger for the flame Grayson would be as good as dead. Yet they had plenty of time to stop them before they did so. Damian would have to budget his time wisely and not get there too early or too late. If they got there early Grayson wouldn’t be in the sanctuary and the cultists would be able to spirit him away. If they got there too late Grayson would be dead. As of now Damian only knew two things: the location of the sanctuary and the time of the sacrifice.
He didn’t know where Grayson was being hid or who was in charge of this cult. As a result they had to make sure they got to the right place. “There weren’t any names but I did grapple with two cultists.” That had ended with quite a few bruises and a dislocated shoulder. Alfred had to set the shoulder himself. Damian would have done it but the butler had been gracious enough to offer to do it himself. Damian figured it wouldn’t hurt to let the man do his job. “Both of them spoke Russians. When I searched their bodies they had tattoos in a Russian dialect I didn’t recognize. I don’t know why Russians would care about Batman but I have a feeling most of them hail from that country.” Russian was a language Damian wasn’t as familiar with as he would like to be. They didn’t need to know that though. His research on John Stewart had told him that the man’s ring could decode any language so he hadn’t worried about that too much.

There were a few more moments of silence and then Damian saw a torchlight in the distance. Without a word he vanished into the shadows. He hoped that the others would do the same. These men didn’t need to know they were here. Not yet, anyway. They were far away enough to run back to the sanctuary room and inform their superiors that there were intruders here. While he knew that Green Lantern’s ring worked long-range efficiently he had a feeling that there basic grasps of magic could help them temporarily avoid his attacks as well. He simply wasn’t willing to risk it. He made a motion to Green Lantern for him to hold his fire and take cover. He was also certain to use the hand signals used in the U.S. Marine Corp as well. He had been sure to research communications methods that the man would understand incase a situation like this occurred.

(OOC: It’s up to you guys how to respond! There are four cultists sweeping the tunnels and they all have some control over dark magic.)

[Black Canary]

Dinah let out a quiet, disappointed grunt. She wasn't as familiar with Russian fighters, typically because they were often more about brute strength than serious technique like the artists of southeast Asia. If she had more time, she might have called up Creote and asked what if anything he knew. She was glad John was there, at least. Not only would he allow for much easier communication, but he would give them an edge against the magical element of this situation. They had a good team here. John was always reliable and someone whom Dinah would want watching her back even without his ring, and if Robin already had experience with the cultists, then he was at least one step ahead of her.

Her boots sloshed quietly in the mud as they continued down the tunnel. "I don't know any kind of martial artists who don't care about Batman," Dinah remarked quietly. Americans were fascinated by him simply because of what he represented, but there were groups all over the world who revered Batman, even if he wasn't the original. Both Bruce and Dick were among the best fighters in the world, and the aura of mystery that surrounded the Batman mythos was appealing to many. Those who knew the kind of training that Bruce had undergone were even more impressed. The guy was a legend even to the people who didn't live for the martial arts. Dinah looked sideways at John. "Don't suppose you've heard of anyone who sounds like that? Maybe former KGB or FSB?" she asked. While John and the other heavy hitters weren't typically as involved in the world of martial arts, he might have heard something if these cultists were government trained.

The blonde fell silent immediately when the glow of a torch illuminated the tunnel up ahead of them. Robin gestured something, and while Dinah may not have had military training, she understood "shut up and get down" in just about every language. She mimicked the younger fighter and shrank back, hiding herself in the darkness of the tunnel. She was no Batman, but that didn't mean stealth training wasn't in her arsenal. Her blue eyes narrowed. If they were lucky, the cultists wouldn't notice them - yet - and they would be able to pick up on something useful either about the sacrifice or the cultists themselves. The more information they had before they stepped in there, the better off they would be. While Dinah could handle going in blind, she really preferred to know whose face she was about to punch in.

[John Stewart]

"Russian..?" John's voice was low as he pondered on the oxymoron that was presented to them. Russian assassins were known to be around the world, but they were more known for their brute force tactics than they were for stealth. Traditional hand to hand in Russian was all about power and crippling your opponent. Which made they more excellent henchmen for numerous mob bosses or even cult level threats like this, except for the whole dark magic thing. Dark magic was everywhere in the world and could be used by whatever fool learned how to tap into even the smallest amount of it. Throughout time though most dark magic was found in Europe or the far east. Only in the last couple hundred years had the far west begun using it.

"hmmm..." The Green Lantern pondered on the question for a moment before replying back to his fellow Justice Leaguer, "There are not a lot of Russian martial artists out there. But there are a lot of KGB or even FSB that specialize in hand to hand that could compete with martial artists. I don't know any right off hand though, most of the ones I've ran into of late were essentially body guards to business men outside of Russia. If I had the tattoos to look at I would have a better idea for you." There were a few branches that were trained within those organizations that specifically studied other forms of combat from other countries, usually to figure out their weaknesses. It would make sense for them to have certain tattoos to mark what group they were affiliated with.

A moment later and Robin had put out the lighter to make a motion to Green Lantern for him to hold his fire and take cover using U.S. Marine Corp hand signals. That was not something he seen everyday, then again he was the son of the original Batman and had been trained by the League of Assassins. This meant something like the Marine hand signals were probably some of the basics stealth tactics. Either way he could not afford to be the one to give away their position, so gathering enough juice to mirror the dark around himself he complete disappeared from sight by way of manipulating light to make him invisible.

[Batman]

"Think less KGB and more Rasputin." Damian murmured as the men continued to walk down the sewer tunnels. The cultists were comprised mostly of men but the few women who were members of the organization tended to be the leaders of this team. The men were tall, big and fierce. Their martial arts prowess tended to fit in the brawling category and while they lacked finesse they definitely had strength. Their deadliness didn't lie in their martial arts prowess. It instead lied in their command of dark magic. He had seen these men conjure flame atronachs, raise the dead and summon vicious blasts of ice and fire. They were deadly and while their source of magic was not infinite it was strong enough to kill someone with ease. Luckily these men were not dealing with your average civilians.

As the men came closer the lead stopped and held up his fist before he clenched it. Immediately the men crouched and as they did they summoned their abilities. Damian watched as one man's hands became encased in red flame. The other man's hands began to chill with ice. The third summoned a massive broadsword with his hands. The last raised his hands and summoned four flame atronachs. Damian's eyes widened ever so slightly as he stood to his feet and pulled out his sword. He silently cursed his stupidity as he recklessly dashed towards the group. If he hadn't opened his mouth than they might not have found them. Damian's natural arrogance and assertion as leader demanded that he give orders. After quickly analyzing his foes he decided that he knew what was best for the team. "Canary! Take the two men with the energy blasts! Green Lantern, take out the man with the flame sprites!"

Damian approached the first flame atronach and slashed at its arm. His sword could cut through nearly anything but human flesh and this flame sprite definitely wasn't human. The blade bit through what felt to be wood and flame. The creature's left arm detached at the elbow and fell to the ground. Damian then slammed the hilt of his blade into the creature's face before he dropped down a smoke bomb. He was trying to give his two teammates time to assemble a strategy before they attacked. As always he was the one who assumed that he was the only one with the plan. Damian then sprinted towards the man with broadsword. At first his foe didn't see him but when Damian leapt out of the smoke he reacted with supernatural speed.

His weapon wasn't solid metal. Instead it was a smokey grene haze of energy. It looked as if it were a hologram. The man swung his weapon and Damian raised his blade to meet him. Their weapons clashed and almost immediately the blade grew red hot before it melted off of the hilt and fell to the ground! Damian barely let go in time without getting his hand covered in molten promethium. The rare mineral sizzled and hissed as it melted into the water. Damian stared up at the 6'5 Russian swordsman and realized that he might be in trouble.

[Black Canary]

The way Robin charged into the situation and immediately began delegating confirmed that he was Bruce's son better than any paternity test could. Dinah wasn't sure how happy she was to be taking orders from a preteen, but what he said made sense and now wasn't the time to squabble over who was in charge. Apart from being vital to their community, Dick had done a lot for her and allowing him to be the focus of some cult's lunacy was not on her agenda.

Dinah took off at a sprint, the muddy water squelching under her boots as she ran for the man with the energy blasts. He was a larger fighter than she, and the energy blasts gave him an advantage, but that didn't mean he was anything she couldn't handle. Bigger opponents just took a bit of a different approach. The man fired off several blasts at her, and Dinah quickly jumped out of the way as she advanced on him. Normally she preferred that her opponent come to her, but those energy blasts meant she was better off fighting him at close range. He fired again, and this time she leaped upward, planted her palms on his shoulders, and propelled herself into a flip over his head. She landed behind him and immediately dug her elbow into the man's left kidney. No matter how big someone was, there were a few places on the human body that hurt like hell when they were hit. That was one of them.

Her opponent let out a grunt of pain, then swung his own elbow back toward Dinah. She sidestepped the attack, then looked up as the man turned to face her. His fists jabbed out at her; he was stronger than she and the flames encasing his hands were something to pay close attention to, but nobody trained with Wildcat and didn't learn how to dodge some solid punches. Her hands instinctively flew up, her body assuming a traditional boxing stance as she bobbed to avoid the hits. As soon as she saw an opening, she retaliated. Another sensitive spot was the vagus nerve, which Dinah struck with a solid uppercut to the liver. If not hit precisely it could very easily result in death, but there was nothing in martial arts that she didn't do carefully. The man let out a sharp cry and buckled over, then had his face connect several times with Dinah's knee. He may have been a powerful fighter, but nerve strikes and knees to the face were enough to take out anybody who felt pain.

The hiss of molten metal hitting water drew Dinah's attention, and she turned to see the swordsman standing over the now unarmed Robin. Well, it was doubtful that he was really unarmed, but a belt full of tools didn't make a giant Russian man versus a child any more of an even match. This was why she hated kids getting involved in this kind of life. In tunnels like these it would have been easy for her Canary Cry to echo and damage John and Robin as much as the cultists, which made Dinah grateful that she had spent so much time practicing how to fine-tune it and target the sound waves at specific subjects... in this case, the head of a giant Russian. She opened her mouth and unleashed the cry, focusing it solely on the swordsman standing over Robin. Good thing the guy dwarfed the kid by a good two feet; no need to tell him to duck.

[John Stewart]

A frustrated expression formed over John's face over the next several minutes. He had already reached his wit's end with this kid, acting like he owned the situation was one thing but to take charge acting like he had a plan was another. Even that he could see coming, but for Dinah to just jump in and follow his lead was even more discouraging. She knew better than this, what was she thinking? Neither of them were taking in to consideration what a colossusal waste of time fighting these guys would be. No, instead they would rather give up their position and run into battle. Were they not both masters of stealth? There he went again assuming things.

Staying invisible John began to hover off the ground once more so that his footprints would not be seen within the tunnel. Once he had positioned himself in the middle of the four flame atronachs. "You all should be paying attention to me..." the voice of the invisible person spoke to draw all the attention of atronachs. The cultists should of knew he was there since Robin had shouted out the names of the two people he was there with as he charged in. Then again, with both Robin and Black Canary drawing the fire while he was invisible he was able to get there. Plus Green Lanterns were not overly known for using light refraction.

Pushing the field around his body outward John launched his attack upon the four flame atronachs surround him. The green energy shifted into spears driving each atronach backwards into the walls. With them dispersed this allowed him to strike them each individually. He generated a armored hand with a hammer over his ring hand. He used this hammer to smash the first atronach from existence. Just as he turned to face the next one he was showered with a flamethrower-like attack from a different one's mouth. He deflected this attack with a half orb shield, from within that shield he created yet another spear which he used stab through the chest of his attacker. Spinning around he dropped a quickly assembled mini-bombs that he dropped into the two remaining atronachs causing them to explode from the inside out.

"What? " John asked as he turned to face the cultist who's atronachs he just destroyed. "Use up all your power summoning those four? Don't tell me you're a one trick pony?" his tone was that of displeasure, but he could see that the guy was reaching for something, so he took no time to wait for a reply. His ring hand was raised and firing a stun blast right at the man's forehead dropping him into the water unconscious. He turned in time to see Black Canary saving Robin from a certain bad situation.

[Batman]

The Russian swordsman didn’t seem to care that Damian was a child. He was guessing that the “R” insignia on his chest made it pretty difficult for criminals to sympathize with him. Especially with a man who wanted his mentor dead. As the cultist swung at Damian the young assassin ducked flipped backwards. As he did so he instead made sure to land on his hands instead of his feet. When he did so he bent his elbows and pushed himself back at the man. His boots collided with what felt like solid metal. He landed back on his feet and the Russian stared down at his chest then at Damian. He smiled and raised his blade yet again. Damian hurriedly dug into his utility belt for a bat-a-rang when he saw Canary out of the corner of his eye. She brutally and efficiently took down her own attacker before twisting towards Damian and the Russian. She opened her mouth and Damian immediately knew what was coming next.

Damian ducked as the man swung down yet again but a canary cry aimed right at his head stopped him from attacking. The man titled his head backed and yelled in pain and surprise. He lost focus and the blade in his hands flickered out of existence. Damian stood to his feet and pulled out the bat-a-rangs. While the man was clearly about to pass out he wasn’t willing to let Black Canary have all the credit for the fight. He jumped forward and slashed across the man’s chest four times before he ducked low again and hooked his leg around the man’s knee. He pulled as hard as he could and the man grunted before falling back first into the muddy water. He groaned as blood seeped from his nose and chest. Damian turned to glare at Black Canary and Green Lantern as if he was daring them to say something.

Damian stood his feet and attempted to wipe the blood off of his cheek but only managed to smear it. As he did he frowned and listened. He could hear the distant beat of drums. “We need to hurry!” His voice betrayed fear as he turned and began to sprint down the tunnel. As he moved he could see the light at the end of the tunnel that betrayed the cultist’s location. He could only pray that dick wasn’t seeing his. Damian came to a stop at the entrance just in time to see a small circle of cultists surrounding a burning pyre. Dick was undoubtedly strapped to it. He frowned and glanced around and then saw a man with helmet adorned with horns standing on an elevated podium above the cultists. Damian frowned. There weren’t many cultists and if they were going to try and burn Dick to death than they’d have time. Then one of the cultists pulled out a wicked curved dagger and Damian realized he didn’t have as much time as he thought they did.

[Black Canary]

Between the three of them, taking down the cultists was a feat accomplished with relative ease. That was fortunate, given that they were definitely running out of time. If they didn't get to Batman soon... Dinah wasn't sure she really wanted to give a lot of thought to that outcome. Once the group of cultists had been taken care of, she joined Damian and John in heading further into the tunnel toward the sound of beating drums. She may not be an expert on ritual sacrifices, but she was still pretty sure that drums meant something bad was going to happen very soon. The blonde glanced sideways at Robin briefly. The poor kid. He acted tough (and a little snobby at times) but she knew the sound of fear being covered up. Dick wasn't the only one whose life would be ruined if they didn't accomplish their goal.

The mud began to suck at her boots once again as they headed toward the end of the tunnel. It was warmer now, and the light of a fire was visible even from a relative distance. Not a good sign. Dinah inhaled through her nose as they approached the scene of the sacrifice. Over the stench of the sewer tunnels, she smelled burning wood but not human flesh. Good. They weren't too late. She stopped outside of the entrance and held out her arm to signal her companions to do the same. Damian had left little choice but to follow his lead when facing the first group of cultists, but this time, Dinah was taking charge. Or, at the very least, going with a plan that involved more than 'run forward and hit people.' The cultists could kill Dick faster than they could rush in and jump them. Their one advantage was that, for the time being, their presence remained unknown. Unfortunately, that would have to change very quickly in order for them to rescue Dick from being sacrificed.

Every second counted now, and within those seconds, every movement. Nothing could go to waste. "John, get a shield up around Batman," Dinah whispered sharply. "Robin, we'll distract the cultists while you get him free from that pyre. As soon as he is, help get him out of here and get him somewhere safe." Expecting an argument, she shot him a brief look that made it clear she had no interest in such a thing. She and John could handle the cultists. The most important part was getting Dick away from here. She doubted that he was in great shape at the moment, but with Robin's help they should both be able to get out of the tunnels or at least page someone who could evacuate them. If nothing else, putting some distance between Batman and the cultists would do everyone some good. Everyone who wasn't a crazy Russian, at any rate.

[John Stewart]

"Something tells me, we wasted a little too much time here," John stated aloud as they all came to a stance of completion in this battle. All in all they had sustained little damage, though Robin looked to be putting on his 'tough face' for the adults. The night was not over yet, Batman was still in the hands of this cult. Which brought a few questions to his mind; who was leading this band of crazy people? Was it someone new or was it someone they had ran into before? They would all be answered soon enough.

Robin soon took off in a hurry toward the noise of drums down the tunnel. Turning to look at Black Canary they both followed as well. The scene when they arrived had the feeling a like B-list horror film. There was no time to joke around, their ally was in trouble. Thankfully this time Black Canary took charge with the order giving, someone he was much more inclined to listen to orders from. They had the advantage for the moment, but as soon as he entered the room that would change quickly. So he would have to make the most of it.

With a nod John's will was turned into energy form giving him a full body aura. Taking flight he flew straight in blasting energy stun blasts in all directions knocking the cultists back. "Hello everyone," he introduced himself as he stopped as he was now hovering next to Batman, who was now encased in an energy shield. "you have looked better Batman," he jested as the vigilante was now protected by his powers. Now doubt this cult had planned on other vigilantes of Gotham City showing up to Batman's aid, but not the Justice League.