Shadows and Cards (a Batboys x OC)

Chapter 7

   Athena

Athena was a little shocked at his response, but at most, relieved. It was as if she didn't even want to leave. Strange. Damian motioned for Athena to follow him. She was hesitant at first but eventually followed. They stepped into the ring, and Damian turned to her.

"I suspect you would like to summon your own weapon?" he taunted.

Athena scowled, but she relaxed and held a smirk across her face.

"Oh no, after you, I'd like to see what you can come up with."

Damian glared at her and began to look at the weapons that were on the rack. Athena knew he had used every weapon here. But he took the time to absorb Athena rather. She saw how he kept glancing at the Shadow stone, and she knew he didn't know what material it was, it wasn't on the periodic table. But he knew it was her source of power, of some sort.

Damian finally picked a long trident, from when Batman had his trifles with Aquaman. She had learned all of Batman's fights and techniques as her training and could tell them all where each one of their scars came from. We weighed it in his hands and gave it a whirl. He twisted it in his hands and swung it as if to parry an invisible force. When he had finished his warm-up he made to grab another one, but Athena held up her hand. He faced her, and she closed her eyes.

Immediately, she began to tremble. She felt the rush of power in her veins, and it was cool, not cold, but cool, and it flowed like the ebb of the tide. Damian lunged for her, but she opened her eyes, and he stopped. They were not green with veins of gold, but now a blue that seems to swim with different shades of blues and hints of purple. Athena spread her wings, and they shifted from their white to water. They rippled with each breath she took, and when she extended her hand, a five-pointed trident appeared in her hand. It was beautiful. A deep, almost purple looking blue metal forged the base, and each point of the trident carried a black diamond. Shadow language was carved into the hilt, and from his face, she guessed he realized that they were the same symbols that were on her shurikens and bow. She thumped the trident on the floor and eyed his trident.

"I do hope you are going to tell me where you make your weapons. And what those symbols are," said Damian.

"I do not make my weapons, they just appear to me when I call for them." Athena said, " But they do require an immense amount of power to wield. No one could ever hold them and live to tell the tale. Or so I am told. As for the symbols, they are a language. Shadow Language. I can't speak it of course. According to the gurus that worked for GEM, it's 'Spoken only by those who possess the power, it can sound many different things. From the demons of hell to the nymphs of the pool of Alsete.' But, it is not in my interest to tell you of my past. Unless you wish for a story of horrors and gory whatnot."

Damian just stood there, trying to process what he just heard. But she made sure he didn't have any time before Athena lunged at him. He parried a split second before the hit landed, and didn't have enough time to regain his balance before his legs were swept from under him. He landed hard on his back and held his trident and it connected with hers just above his face. She panted against his strength, and she twisted her hands hard enough that his trident was wrenched from his hands. He sprung up, only to be punched in the face.

She was like the waves of a tsunami. Strong and fast. He stumbled and found himself against the railing of the ring. Athena sprung from the ground and ascended to the top of the cave. Then, she plummeted. She tucked her wings as tight as she could, and sped to the ground with immense speed. Damian covered his head, but she snapped her wings open just before she hit the metal floor. She grunted at the effort, as her wound in her back screamed again, and black spots swam in her vision. Athena slacked her wings, and she collapsed to the ground. She drew her form back into herself, and she felt suddenly very warm as she regained her normal self. Or at least, as normal as she could get. The spots started to fade as her powers began to knit her wound back together.

Athena used her other senses to stand and walk to the edge, where she sat down hard, and Damian walked over to her. He held out a bottle of water. She took it gratefully and drained it in a matter of seconds.

Damian said, "I'm sorry. I didn't know that your wound isn't fully healed."

Athena managed a shaky laugh. "My powers may be grand and dangerous, but they lack the ability to make me bulletproof. That was supposed to be my next procedure before..."

Damian cocked his head. "Before I saved you?"

"I can save myself thank you," she snapped, "You just happened to make the process a little easier."

"Well don't mind me, I'll just be over here not saving your sorry ass." And he stalked off.

Athena scowled deeply. Gods, boys are such a nuisance. She was so much better on missions with other girls or going alone. But that didn't bother her, it was always a competition in the lab, trying to please Dr. Keystone so they would live another day.

She was one of the "lucky ones" and was his prime example of an experiment gone supposedly right. GEM was a very secret organization, so secret, that after you resigned or retired, you were killed on sight. And they had a good reason to. If word got out that this breakthrough had come around, there would be a full-blown war for the tech. But this breakthrough was made by the wrong people, and the outcomes were given to the wrong clients. So she stayed trapped in that God's forsaken lab, opening new pathways in her powers, and caring for the ones she loved. And when she found out that she had been auctioned off to The Joker, she began her plan to get out. But that plan was cut off when she was "saved" by an ass dressed in a bird costume. So now with every spare second, she began anew and sorted through her mistakes to get on the right track again.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a small coughing noise coming from behind her. She whirled, moving into her fighting stance, but instead found the man named Tim standing behind her. He backed up a few steps, and she felt the heat rising in her cheeks.

"Sorry," she mumbled.

Tim grinned sheepishly and held out a thin piece of glass.

"I need to take your measurements." he flushed.

She sighed in relief as she held her arms out from her sides. Tim pressed a button on the piece of glass, which was more of a remote, and a beam scanned her. He looked at the data quickly, and he sized her up.

He asked, "What do you prefer as a color palette? Nothing too bright."

That question made her think. She never really had a favorite color, nor had she played with any toys in her youth. But she had always admired the deep purples of her fellow mutants blood, in some twisted way. When she trained, the trainers would have her use the weaker, failed projects as her practice. While she was supposedly blessed with black blood. In her normal form, it was purple like anyone else's in the lab. But when she shifted, it became a dark black, not red, black. And she could never change it back to purple while she was in her other forms. Her body would not allow it. So it made blending in on covert missions somewhat a challenge. Yet, it was also her calling card. She smiled.

"Black and purple," she said.