The silence was practically deafening, all eyes trained on the pacing figure dressed in black. Even Flash was silent, and that alone was a major accomplishment. Batman was practically radiating frustration, glare even more intense as he turned to stare intently at his fellow Leaguers.

"We cannot wait on this any longer. My son is dying, and I will not let that happen. Zatara, can you or can you not help? Dick does not have time for maybes."

Zatara sighed, avoiding Batman's gaze by staring down at his hands. "None of my research has yielded useful results. This area of magic is not a normal part of my expertise. I simply do not have the power or understanding needed to cast out a demon of that magnitude. As it is, we are fortunate to have been able to restrain him at all. I'm sorry, Batman... I will continue my search."

Batman cursed, shaking his head and returning to pacing the room. "There has to be something we can do."

"There is one thing... we have the Helmet of Fate at the Mountain. As a Lord of Order, Nabu would most likely have the power to exorcise the demon."

"No." Wonder Woman spoke up, shaking her head emphatically. "If you don the Helmet, Zatara, Nabu will most likely not let you go. That is not something we can risk."

"Wonder Woman is right... as powerful as Nabu is, he is too much of a wildcard. It would be unwise." Black Canary agreed, brows furrowed in thought as she watched Batman's pacing grow more agitated. "Please, Batman, sit down. We can work something out... at the very least, maybe we can restrain the demon enough to put him on a drip to help with the deteri–"

Batman's fist slammed down onto the table, the sound cutting off Canary mid-sentence. "Have you not been paying attention? It's not just his body that's failing. He's been stuck in there so long that his mind is going too. At this rate even if we do get the demon out, there won't be any of my son left to fix." He took in a breath, eyes meeting those of Zatara's as his shoulders slumped ever so slightly. 

"I won't ask you to become Fate. You have your own daughter to worry about, and as a father, I cannot ask you to sacrifice yourself for my child. But I will ask you, ask all of you," his eyes scanned the room, tired gaze meeting each and every Leaguer's, one by one, "to continue looking. My boy served the League and our world for years. He is... was... a good hero. This happened to him while on a mission that we sent him on. The least we can do is do everything in our power to free him."

And with that, Batman turned on his heel and stormed from the meeting room, quickly enough that the rest of the Justice League were unable to see the frustrated tears gathering in his eyes.

His son was hurting, and Bruce would do anything to get him back.

Anything.

Zatara's frowned as his fingers brushed over the cold metal of the Helmet of Fate, a soft sigh slipping from his lips. He knew the risks that revolved around wearing the Helmet, knew that if he put it on, he would most likely never be able to take it off. But he also knew that what Bruce had said was right.

Dick had been possessed due to the League's negligence. It was up to them to remedy this issue, and, as the main person capable of dealing with demonic forces, that meant that Zatara needed to take action.

Besides, as a father, he knew all too well how Bruce was feeling. If something like this had happened to Zatanna... no, he could not even bear the thought of it. Bruce had already bad to live through the death of one of his children, and that had nearly demolished the hero. Then again, he had been devastated when Dick had been taken.

Bruce had never been the same after Dick's disappearance, and that in turn affected the League. With Superman still out of commission and Batman distracted, earth was vulnerable. And, as a hero, that was not something Zatara could simply ignore.

Which led to why he had visited the Mountain after the meeting with the League. Under the pretext of checking the security, Zatara had made his way into the trophy room, drawn to the Helmet of Fate as if it too knew what needed to be done.

"Dad?"

Turning, Zatara smiled fondly at his daughter. "Zatanna." He opened his arms, and his daughter stepped into them, leaning into his embrace. "I need to discuss something with you."

Zatanna pulled back, eyes moving from Zatara to the Helmet of Fate. "You're thinking about putting it on, aren't you? This is about saving Dick, isn't it? Wally said Flash told him that you guys had found him."

"Sometimes I wonder how you got so smart." Zatara murmured, ruffling his daughter's hair as he nodded. "He's dying, Zatanna. We're not going to be able to find another way fast enough. Even now, he might not be able to recover. He's so young... younger than you. He does not deserve to go through this. I... I can help."

"But if you do help, you'll be gone, won't you? You'd be rescuing him from possession only to be possessed yourself."

"Technically, it isn't possession with Nabu... I would agree to it. But yes... if I don the Helmet, Fate will likely not let me go."

Zatanna took in a slow breath, tilting her head back to meet her father's gaze. "You're willing to do that? To sacrifice yourself... to sacrifice everything to save Dick? Even though he might not be able to recover?"

"I will not do it if you tell me not to. But yes. Even if he may not recover, I believe he at least deserves the chance to do so. Besides, this is not all about Dick... with Superman out of commission and regenerating in his fortress, the world needs Batman to be on the alert. He has already suffered the loss of one son. I... I am afraid that losing another would break him. The world needs Batman more than it needs Zatara. The League needs a focused leader."

"I need Zatara. I need my father." Zatanna whispered, shaking her head and hugging her father tighter, fighting back the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes. She needed to be strong. What her father was saying made sense. This was the burden of being a hero. "But, I understand that this is something that needs to be done. I... I love you, dad."

Zatara clutched his daughter close, pressing a tender kiss to her forehead. "I love you too, my child. I am so proud of who you have become. You will be a great hero someday."

Their embrace lasted for several long moments before Zatanna slowly pulled back, picking the Helmet off the shelf and placing it in her father's hands with a sad smile. "Go. Be a hero."

And, with one last embrace, Zatara left.

Zatanna watched him go, waiting until he was out of earshot until she let the tears spill forth, sinking to her knees on the cold floor as she wrapped her arms around herself, knowing all too well that she had just seen her father for the last time.

"Great. The magician has come back to bother me again. What do you want this time, oh magical one?" Crimson snarked, spitting in the magician's general direction, red eyes narrowing suspiciously. "Why are you holding a helmet?"

The magician food looked grim as he lifted the helmet, staring down at the gold metal. "I have come to put an end to you... once and for all."

"Oh, suuure. Like you could." The demon snorted, rolling his eyes even as he eyed the helmet with growing suspicion. That looked like... but no. It could not be. Right? There was no way this magician would sacrifice himself just to get rid of Crimson... Right? "Whatever you have planned, you might want to give it up. Even if you get rid of me, the boy will not be able to recover. He's doomed."

"Richard Grayson is strong. He will make it out of this. I have faith in him." The magician food responded, watching Crimson with a cool resolve as he slowly slipped the helmet down onto his head. "You will regret possessing one of our own."

Light filled the room, and Crimson flinched back, hissing in disapproval. "Dude. Seriously? Mind the brightness, would ya? Some of us are light sensitive here."

"Be quiet, Demon. I am Nabu, Lord of Order, and you do not belong here."

Well then.

That was definitely not the voice of the magician food.

A brilliant beam of light hit Crimson in the chest, his back arching as pain radiated through his body. It was too bright. Too light. His eyes began to glow brighter red as he fought against the invasive power, fought to maintain a hold of the human body, but it was in vain.

A loud, bloodcurdling, scream ripped through the boy's body as darkness flowed out of him, pouring from his nose and mouth in shadowy ripples, pooling onto the floor around him, the pool growing larger and larger, until the scream cut off, the final vestiges of darkness slipping from the boy's lips, his body collapsing lifeless to the floor.

The shadows whirled, taking on a vaguely humanoid form as they swept toward the cell bars, red lightning crackling within the pure darkness.

It did not get very far as a second beam of light pierced through the veil of darkness, the shadows dispersing under the onslaught of pure brightness, the demon's shadows disintegrating into nothingness.

Fate watched as the demon was vanquished, nodding approvingly before turning on his heel to leave, only to be met with the startled faces of Bruce and Damian.

"Zatara?" Bruce asked, quick to straighten his stance and return to his generally emotionless expression.

"Zatara is gone now. I am Fate." Fate stated calmly, stepping around the heroes. "The demon has been neutralized."

"And Dick?"

Fate shrugged. "The boy is none of my concern. My job here is done."

Bruce did not wait for the Lord of Order to leave, rushing instead to the side of his youngest. Fingers pressing against the boy's neck, Bruce felt for a pulse, whispering prayers under his breath.

There.

Faint, unsteady, and rapidly fading, but there, nonetheless.

"Damian. I need you to call an ambulance. We need to get him to hospital immediately. Explanations can wait until after he's stabilized." Bruce ordered, slipping into his Batman headspace as he gathered the boy into his arms, wincing at how incredibly light he felt.

He needed to stay calm.

Dick needed him to stay calm.

Dick.

He would not let his son die.

He would not lose another child.

He refused to.