The Gathering

[j_onn_j_onzz]

J'onn was one of the first to react to Hal's summons.   When hearing the explanation, the glimmer of hope...something that J'onn, despite everything, has been able to find on a regular basis...resonated in J'onn's mind

Comments

[7_seas_czar]

Arthur is quiet, his arms crossed. He's waiting to see who all ends up being assembled before he tries to make any comments - especially about pairs.

[zee_zatara]

Here's hoping he doesn't make a comment about this one. Zatanna appears next to him in a small puff of magic and sparkle. A last minute arrival, sure, but you can't just rush a show on Vegas when people have seen good money to see you.

[beware_my_power]

"We're going to need some extra mojo on this trip, I think."

Hal's leaning against the wall.

"Storming the gates of Hell isn't exactly a routine mission, even for us. Anyone heard from Zauriel lately?"

[zee_zatara]

This was true. In Zatanna's case, Hell tended to try to storm the gates of Shadowcrest more often than not.

"I've...never really had much to do with the guy myself," she replies.

[canary_noir]

"Did someone call for extra mojo?" Dinah asks, walking into the assembly. She grins at Hal and made a gesture to draw attention to her curves, "I think I've got more mojo than you can handle, G.L."

She smiles at J'onn, Zatanna and Arthur, shrugging a little, "Sorry I'm late. You know those crazy Birds of Prey parties."

[7_seas_czar]

Arthur arches a brow and then decides against asking, "Are we waiting for anyone else in specific? Does anyone know where Zauriel might be?" He glances toward Zee, as it seems she might be more likely to know than the others.

Then again, it might well just be because she's next to him.

[j_onn_j_onzz]

"Diana and Oliver have both indicated they were on their way. Kal is finishing up a rescue effort over Peru but will try to be here before we leave." J'onn said.

[beware_my_power]

Hal smiles as Dinah arrives.

"I meant the magical kind - not discounting Zee, but someone resistant to magical spells would be handy to have. One of the Marvels?"

[7_seas_czar]

As they arrive, Arthur is not entirely certain what to expect. This is not a situation he handles every day. It isn't even something he deals with on a yearly basis. Still, he is here for a friend and a worthy soul. As the teleportation effect fades, he looks around to see what is visible.

[jla_hell]

There's plenty visible. Wotan promised safe passage to hell, and safe passage from when the job was done. He honored that.

Once you GOT there, however, was another story.

The environs were what you would expect of "a" hell...cavernous spaces along with an uncomfortable level of heat.

Oh, and several hundred zombie-esque demonic beings. Surrounding the heroes.

They look at the heroes as they fade into view on the ground and growl.

[canary_noir]

Dinah grimaces and plants on foot back behind her, raising one hand and taking up a relaxed but defensive stance.

"Looks like the welcome wagon was waiting for us. Suggestions, oh Magick-y Ones?"

[beware_my_power]

"I don't think we need Zee to tell us to bust some heads."

Hal's ring glows with his willpower, green energy flowing out to protect his less durable companions from the unnatural heat.

[jla_hell]

After a few minutes of what would define attrition (Heroes are stronger, but the demons are nigh endless, and on their home turf to boot), the throngs navigate around a bend into an area even more cavernous than that they were previously in.

Here, more garishly perverse demonic presences begin to join the fray, while above it all, a spirit in a tattered suit and trench floats over it all.

This...is Roger Romaine, the Spirit King.

"Ah, the Justice League." Romaine says. "Wotan must have been desperate."

[spirit_of_truth]

The flow of battle here is steady, for Diana - demons pile up over her, claws and teeth flashing, she breaks free with a kick or a punch, cracking heads together or using one of their own against the others to clear a path.

They swarm again and she fights, grabbing two by their scaly necks and flying up to face towards the Spirit King.

CRUNCH! and the two go limp in her hands.

"You have one of our own, Spirit King. Release him from his prison, and we will leave this place."

[jla_randoms]

Oliver sort of just looked like he was letting the others doing most of the fighting of the legions of dead, but in reality he was trying to find ways of using his trick arrows to remove large groups of them. He had brought a certain amount that would eventually run out, so Oliver looked for huge clusters to take out.

Pulling out a bomb arrow, he aimed for a group that was moving towards him. Releasing the arrow, Oliver watched the explosion while looking for a new location to shoot from. "Well this is a fun little shindig. How are we going to top this next year?"

When he heard the Spirit King speak, Oliver automatically sent an electric-arrow at him. "Desperate or devious? I think someone is just irritated by the fact that he is about to get beat."

[7_seas_czar]

Arthur continues the fighting. It becomes almost a mantra, a meditation to continue the fight. It is convenient to not have to think about anything other than the motion and the fury. As Spirit King speaks, he's pulls his head up, breaking the pattern. He looks toward the other man for a moment, grabbing a breath, a raking claw getting through his defenses.

His jaw clenches on the sound that he makes as he starts swinging again.

[metromarvel]

A hand snaps out.

Freddie will feel enough pressure to press coal into diamond around his throat, as the blood red eyes of the Superman bore into him. "It." It sounds like Clark, but he speaks like the Spirit King. "Burns."

Smoke rises off of 'Superman's' body as he lifts Captain Marvel Junior into the air, and proceeds to body slam the boy into the ground, followed up by a stamping motion aimed at Kid Marvel's exposed throat. "Its amazing...I can see your blood cells bursting under the pressure. Like having a microscope and telescope for eyes..."

"Beautiful..." Superman murmurs, as a wave of terrible heat vision rockets forward, lashing at the JLA. "No wonder this fool's so damn happy all the time..."

[spirit_of_truth]

"Green Lantern, release the force field around the two of them!" Diana is barreling towards Superman as she speaks, trusting that it will be gone by the time she reaches them.

A slight deviation in her path, as she moves into range of those eye beams and attempts to deflect them off of her bracers and focus them into the crowds of demons. They scar smoking lines along the rocky ground and several demons flare up and into ash almost immediately.

[beware_my_power]

The forcefield's gone, flowing smoothly to protect Freddy Freeman from Superman's onslaught even as Diana makes the request.

[7_seas_czar]

Arthur makes certain that he is between Zatanna and his possessed friend. There are still the minions of Hell all around them but the largest threat is completely of a different level than any of the ones around them - even the dinosaur looking ones. There is a line of deflection that scalds a line through some fiends and into the ground not far in front of him.

How is it going, Zee?