The League and Dracula.

Meanwhile back in Gotham…

The three brides looked out across the balcony of the top floor of the iceberg lounge, staring out into the city where Wayne Tower once stood. In its place was the towering spire of Dracula’s castle. Tall stone spires several stories tall jutted out of the central structure, linked together with arching bridges that led to towers that hung in the open air, almost in defiance of gravity. Instead of being built outward, the castle stacked over itself as if the only direction to go was up. Evan from their vantage point, they could still hear the groan of stone and metal off in the distance from the looming castle, almost is if it had a voice of its own, haunted and suffering. Though they could still see the great castle as clearly as one would see in broad daylight over the plume of smoke and dust and the halo of bats that had decided to arrive and fly around the great structure, to them it looked less a building and more a rotten skeletal hand clawing out of the earth and reaching for the near-full moon looming overhead.

“That… That is Dracula’s castle?” Asked Vicky, suddenly feeling very meek in the presence of the massive structure.

“That is his kingdom, his tomb, his crowning achievement.” Answered Zatanna, spreading her arms wide to bask in the castle’s presence. “Everything you see here was constructed by our lover and master, built in an age before the darkness if religious ignorance brought man low and great knowledge lost forever.”

“Such secrets it must have hidden within its depths, such a marvel to behold…” Gasped Talia, taking in the castle’s jagged and towering presence.

“Looks like he’s overcompensating if you ask me… Heh heh heh…” Chuckled the Joker, getting a cold stare from the three vampires glaring back at him. Unaffected by their displeasure, the Joker continued to laugh to himself, shrugging. “Ooh, tough crowd, fine, I know when to keep my head down… Heh heh…”

“I must go to him; he would only bring his citadel here for only one reason, to bring the League to his attention!” Snapping her fingers, Zatanna exploded into a flock of bats, the mass fluttering and screeching as it flew around, her sister brides and made its way towards the castle in the distance.

*

“Geez boss, look at THAT!” Called out Rufus at the window of Two-Face’s office, pointing out to where Wayne tower once stood, now replaced with the grizzly gothic spire that pointed upwards from the heart of the city like a jagged knife.

Harvey sat at his desk, flipping his coin to occupy himself as his two lieutenants stared out into the city where the castle had appeared. He was still reeling from the meeting with Dracula, or some nutcase who called himself Dracula. But after the scene with Black Mask and now the spooky castle appearing out of nowhere, Harvey was beginning to think.

“News is saying it was like a bomb went off in the city, 9 blocks are ruined.” Montino pointed out, watching the newsfeed from his phone.

“Most bombs don’t sprout a castle after the bang.” Answered Rufus, finally turning his attention to his boss sitting at his desk. “So, what you think Mr. Two-Face? We do what this guy says or what?”

Snatching his coin in midair, Two-Face looked to his two men and leaned back, frowning at the turn of events. His voice smooth and calm when he replied. “He said he came here to deal with the werewolves plaguing the city, once they were gone, he’d leave, and the city would be ours again…” Then his voice turned gruff and hoarse. “But when you show up with your own house in tow, it just screams he’s planning to stay!”

“So what you gonna do boss?”

Looking down at the coin in his good hand, Harvey turned it back and forth with his fingers, eyeing the silver dollar and its two faces; one clean to a polished glint, the other burred and scarred. Looking up to his two men, Harvey showed both sides of his coin to them, announcing what they meant before flipping it. “Tails? … We help get rid of a wolf problem. Heads?... Another problem.” Flipping the coin in his hand, the three men watched the silver dollar spin in the air and land in the palm of Two-Face’s hand. Looking down at the results, Harvey pocketed his coin and looked to his two men.

“Get the boys mobilized, we got some monsters to kill.”

“Right boss.” Nodded Rufus, heading out to tell the others downstairs. Before Montino left, Harvey called him over, scribbling something on a piece of paper and handing it to the well tailored criminal. “Get everything on this list, I don’t care how you do it; buy it, steal it, grow it in the backyard, I don’t care, get as much as you can and meet back here… We’re gonna hit the place at 2AM!”

Looking at the short list, the man raised an eyebrow in confusion, but looking back at his boss Two-Face he stopped questioning it and pocketed the list. “Right boss.”

*

In the grand hall of Dracula’s castle, the scrying shards of the world mirror glistened as it shifted its form. Shards of mercurial metal polished to a mirror finished gathered together, merging and forming a singular raw metal mirror that reflected all around it before it appeared to bend and fold. The reflection rippled and instead of showing the interior of the castle hall it reflected the meeting room of the Watch Tower, where Dracula stepped through and entered his castle now in Gotham. Behind him he held the hand of Wonder Woman, like a gentleman he guided her through the entrance where Superman, Dr. Fate and the Flash followed. Once the passed the mirror, the entrance shattered like glass, and the hundreds of shards clumped together once more into ball of jagged metal, waiting to be used again.

“I have brought my castle to the heart of Gotham.” Dracula explained. “The situation with the wolf plague has seen to it that I must use all at my disposal to deal with it.” Taking in the massive complex around them, Dracula made a simple gesture with his hand and the front gates of his castle opened wide for the League to see the city outside.

Floating just half a foot off the ground, Superman smelled the air and scrunched his face, something bad had certainly happened in the city of Gotham. Looking back at the Flash, the two men nodded and with the crack of a sonic boom, the two shot out of the castle faster than the eye could see, even Dracula watch on in awe at their speed, the sizzle of static electricity still filling the air after their departure. “Such Marvelous powers your friends have.” Spoke the vampire count, turning his attention to the blue and gold sorcerer and the princess of Amazons.

“Superman and the Flash may require seeing with their own eyes the atrocities that had occurred in this city, but I can feel the pain and anguish that floats heavy in the air.” Announced Dr. Fate. “So many dead… So many lost to the plague.”

“A tragedy I assure you, one I hope to bring to a swift end.”

Darting his attention back to Dracula, Dr. Fate hovered closer, looming over the tall vampire, the air suddenly going cold as they stared at each other. “You and tragedy are one in the same … Count. Where you go, Death follows.”

“Bold words from a man who cheated death by robbing the lives of so many others… Oh yes, I KNOW that is not the true you under there.” Smiled Dracula darkly. “Tell me, how many bodies have you possessed? How many lives and families did you destroy in the name of maintaining the Balance? Does the man you wear even know who you are? Is he even aware of where he is? Do you even give him the courtesy?”

“Enough!” Declared Diana, clapping her hands together to gain their attention. Your pasts are not important right now, the only thing important is the city and the people inside of it.”

Smiling with a graceful bow, Dracula rose to his full height again with a look of fondness in his eyes. “So much like your mother, yes, you are absolutely correct.”

Suddenly a swarm of bats flew into the grand hall of Dracula’s castle, swarming around the three figures before the bats clouded around the Count and before to take form, eventually taking the shape of Zatanna, wrapping herself over the arm and shoulder of the Count with a smile on her fanged lips. “My goodness my love, you invited the League to your home… Shall I prepare drinks?”

“Zatanna!” Gasped Wonder Woman, staring back at her friend and comrade from the Justice League, suddenly noticing that her friend’s skin had taken on an alabaster white, her jet black hair flowing behind her against the current of the wind and blood red eyes staring back at her with a predatory mischief in them. “You turned Zatanna into a Vampire?!”

Looking into Dracula’s eyes and smiling when he traced a finger lovingly under her chin, Zatanna looked back to her startled friend and separated herself from her lover and master. “Diana, Dracula SAVED me, if it wasn’t for him, Bruce would have killed me, or worse I’d be some terrible monster tearing apart people every night.”

“And you aren’t that now?”

“I feed when I need to Diana, and I don’t kill who I take from… But the wolves, they’ are murder incarnate, they’ll kill anything that moves and turn who survives. This needs to be done Diana.”

Glaring back at Dracula and her smiling friend, Diana unconsciously brought her hand to the lasso of truth that hung from her hip. Tilting her head in amusement, Zatanna stepped forward and grabbed the lasso with her hand, the golden rope glowing with the compulsion to tell the truth.

“Everything I told you is true Diana; with or without the rope, I would NEVER lie to you.”

Slowly nodding in agreement, the two turned to the grand entrance when Superman and the Flash returned, Barry bending at the knees to catch his breath before joining the others.

“Can’t speak for tall dark and scary over there, but so far his story checks out.” Panted the Flash, pulling a candy bar from his pocket to get his energy back. “Everywhere I looked I found claw marks on walls and buildings and mortuaries stacked to overflow, so either Gotham has a bear problem, or he’s telling the truth.”

“The Flash is right, I’ve gone over news papers, television footage and spots of interest around the city and what I’ve found were nothing but werewolf attacks both documented and recorded, even by the police… I also found Wayne Manor destroyed.” Superman announced, his attention on the unreadable Count Dracula the entire time.

“I have sealed the city in a ring of flames the beasts cannot escape from… To contain the plague until the King of Wolves is found and slain, I know this must be difficult for you all, but your… Batman has become a rabid animal that must be put down.”

Looking to each other, the Justice League made a silent decision before Superman floated towards Dracula, crossing his arms. For a moment Dracula had given this Superman an appraisal, finding him to be almost his opposite in everyway; kind, compassionate, humble, a beacon of hope in the darkness. Everything Dracula was not. “For now, we’ll believe you, but over the matter of Batman, he lives until WE decide what to do with him.”

Bowing gracefully with his arms outstretched, Dracula returned to his full height where Zatanna joined him at his shoulder and arm. “Indeed, despite becoming a terrible monster, even I must admit he is a noble man, I shall leave his fate to you… When the time is right, you shall be informed” Making a gesture with his hand towards the ball of glass and metal still floating behind them, the mirror reconstructed in front of them all and formed a window into the Watch Tower, gesturing to them to enter, the League stepped through the portal and closed behind them. Once alone, the two vampires stepped out to look onto the city of Gotham, with Zatanna holding the man’s arm affectionately.

“Do you intend to keep your promise with the League my love?”

“Of course not! The wolf is mine, he has been mine centuries long ago and will be again, the League of Justice will be given the courtesy of burying their pet wolf when I am done with him.”

*

Stepping out of the portal and looking back at the castle and the two vampires before the portal closed, Wonder Woman narrowed her eyes.

“So, how are things down there Diana? You think Bats gone nuts?” Asked the Green Lantern, floating overhead with the green glow of his ring illuminating his presence.

“Not sure… Hal, can you do a favour for me please?”

“Sure thing, princess, what do you have in mind?” Slowly bringing himself to stand on the floor, Diana pulled him close to whisper into his ear. The look the Green Lantern gave her made everyone around them take notice in surprise before he shrugged and agreed, taking his leave and exiting the space station for deep space.