Chalant Candlelight

Chapter 24

A somber might in the med bay, as Artemis wrapped up Wally's calf, he was half out of it, sitting up in the raised bed just shaking his head. I leaned against one of the tables, my arms crossed, brooding,

"Now you look like Robin," Artemis said to me before kissing Wally real quick as he smiled slightly,

"Klarion was here, for almost two years," my words brought the somber feeling over the room again, "I can't believe-" I clenched my stomach, and covered my mouth running to the nearby bathroom as I began to throw up. Artemis came in behind me holding back my hair and letting me get it out of my system, "He was just walking around with us," I said, tears running down my cheeks before throwing up again, "and I trusted him."

"It's okay," Artemis attempted to comfort me, rubbing my back, "it's okay."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later in the day,

"How did you figure out it was Kalrion?" Artemis entered the room, bringing me a hot chocolate,

"When I fell through his portal, I saw this place."

"In the portal?" Wally asked, laying on the couch behind me while I sat on the floor leaning up against it,

"Yeah, there was this house in the distance, like his old one, except darker and scarier."

"Is that even possible?" Wally questioned,

"I-I think I heard screaming from inside the house," I uttered, making Artemis gasp and Wally sit up,

"We have to check it out." He declared, trying to get up when Artemis slowed him down,

"You need to rest and recover." She gently sat on the edge of the couch ruffling his hair as he tried to get comfortable again, "Zatanna, Magan, and I will go."

"I don't like the sound of this girl's trip into a crazy demon child's lair." He crossed his arms, pouting at her,

"We'll be fine. We're just going to check it out, nothing more."

"I still don't like it."

"Relax." She helped me to my feet as I followed her out of the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"It was right here." I point and lead them towards the empty space, where Klarion's old house had been and where I had seen the new house only there was nothing there, "It was right here..." I murmur again,

"Maybe he wanted you to see something? Maybe he was just trying to get on your nerves?" Artemis thought of possible answers,

"I know I saw something, and I know it was real. I could feel the wind when I fell through the portal, this wind." I gestured to the air and the slight breeze that passed across feeling colder than the beach's breeze had felt,

"Zatanna, no need to get agitated, I'm just saying there is nothing here." She sighed,

"There is, but maybe Klarion knew we were coming, and he moved it or something."

"He moved a whole haunted house?" Artemis rolled her eyes, both of us getting progressively more hostile toward each other,

"I don't know, Artemis, I'm just trying to figure out why I'm so sure that there was a freaking house here, and now there is nothing!"

"Well, why don't we put the mobile home idea in our back pocket for now!"

"Fine! What's your theory?"

"I'm like the ring leader, I call the shots," Magan mumbled unknowingly getting both Artemis and my attention, "I'm like a firecracker, I make it hot," She obliviously sang, nodding along as she stepped around the ground, ignoring Artemis and me, "When I put on a show, I feel the adrenaline moving through my veins, Spotlight on me and I'm ready to break..."

"Magan?!" Artemis yelled, getting the cloudy-headed girl back to earth,

"Yes?" She said, startled out of her daydream,

"Magan, why are you singing Britney songs?" I questioned,

"That's Britney?" Magan tapped her chin, "I don't know, it just been stuck in my head since we landed here."

"Well, stop, you're starting to sound like Robin." Artemis lowered her head,

"Robin?" Magan's face lit up,

"Magan?" I questioned when she got this look on her face,

"Robin, he's here."

"What?" Artemis threw her head back up,

"Whenever I try to get into Robin's mind, all I hear is Britney. It's his psychic defense."

"Magan, you're kidding." My jaw dropped,

"He has to be somewhere around here." Magan nodded, becoming vigilant.

Artemis stepped towards the sight of the house, becoming nervous as she reached out towards its lot of space before being launched backward by a huge rippling forcefield,

"Bingo." She said, standing back up and dusting herself off,

"Can you use a spell for this?" Magan asked,

"I can try." I said, putting my hands in front of me, "But it might take a while." I begin to chant the spell. My magic, being far more advanced than I last was. The spell only took about ten minutes of deep thought and power to lift the spell over the hidden house.

With a large gust of wind, the shield began to recede, bringing the house into sight. 

"We should call for backup," Artemis said, looking at the giant horrifying house Klarion had constructed over the last one. I didn't say anything. I just began running to the house. Something in me told me that's what Robin would have done too, "Zatanna, wait!" She shouted, chasing after me as I blew open the door with a spell, "Zatanna, this is not smart. We almost didn't make it out of this place before!" Artemis stopped at the door seal,

"He's in here Artemis, we have to find him, we don't have time to wait for backup," I said passing by the firepit that had grown a mouth and tried to eat my foot only to have its teeth kicked in by me,

"Even then, we have to be careful." She punched the lamp light that tried to reach out and grab her,

"Fine, stay here and wait for Magan to get back, but I'm finding Robin." I twisted my body away, running to the stairs as they started to move one by one, 

"Zatana, you're being crazy!" She yelled as I jumped from side to side up to the second level to the great big hallway leading to more stairs. I opened the first room to a stale white room with an operation table, shivers down my spine, led me to slam the door back, and continue to the next room full of chains swinging from the ceiling, 

"Not here." I sigh, door after door, room after room, floor after floor. My stomach sunk farther and farther, seeing rooms of nooses, rooms of spikes, rooms with saws, and dried blood on almost everything. A room of mirrors, all smashed, with bloody hand prints streaking them, "This place is nightmare fuel." I shiver, "Robin would leave a sign, wouldn't he?" I ask while investigating a room of medieval torture devices,

"Like a glove!" I lift his glove from a piece of metal, blood pouring out and turning to butterflies when it touched the ground, I screamed at the sight when I heard a gasp from the floor above before a steady tapping started, he was trying to lead me. 

Up the stairs, I entered the dark room only illuminated by the open door, the temperature was freezing, and the room was full of glass pools of water and frozen vapor in the air,

"Z." A voice huffed out as my eyes ran down the center of the room to the bloody and beaten man on his knees in the middle of the floor, soaked head to toe, his small breath was visible due to the cold,

"Robin?" I step forward, his suit was ripped to pieces, and his hair covered his maskless eyes. I quickly dropped onto my knees in front of him, taking his hands in my hands. He was frozen to the touch,  "Robin?" I see his mouth turn up in a smirk of relief before he collapsed into my chest.