(TW: MENTIONS OF BLOOD)

Magic is fickle. It takes a lot of learning to get it under control. Magic is fickle. It can sometimes go haywire and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it.

Magic is fickle, ever-changing and dangerous. Magic also doesn't last forever.

The news that the monstrous man called the Doctor has escaped jail comes like a punch to the gut. All these years Aurelia had been thinking that he was never going to escape; that the binding spell was everlasting. But it isn't, and so her aunt says. Nothing lasts forever and neither does magic. It pains her considerably that her spell was weak enough that the Doctor escaped from jail once more. A spell that lasted only for three-four years? Was that how weak she is?

Curses, hexes and jinxes...all lasted for centuries, only because their caster was a strong sorcerer.

So now, Aurelia feels like she is not. Is she weak?

Even with the Phoenix? Is she weak?

"I know you have questions," Clara says, noting the distress on her niece's face. The blame lies on her too for not keeping a tab on the Doctor. She became lax and that is how the man escaped. "But it's my fault that he escaped. I should have been watching him and keeping an eye on his activities. I didn't think he'd escape. After all he's nothing like the Joker or the Riddler slipping through Arkham's loose gates."

"I don't blame you," Aurelia replies, clenching her hands. "My spell was weak and that's why he escaped. That's on that."

"It's not your fault, kiddo. Trust me, it is not. You know how things are. At that time, you were only just getting used to the Phoenix. It's okay. We're gonna figure it out."

"How? The last time we caught him, you almost got captured."

"We'll do something. We'll figure it out together."

"Well, we have to."

Clara steps up to her niece. "That bastard of a human being deserves to rot in jail forever. We'll stop him, I promise. Besides, though he's smart, he is arrogant and very full of himself. That makes him predictable. We can figure out where he'll attack."

"If he's predictable," Aurelia crosses her arms. "Then why and how did he escape from jail?"

"He probably wants attention. And there's no better way of getting attention than attacking a busy market during the morning." Clara looks sure of her answer, yet Aurelia still doubts her a little bit.

"The market square? You think he'll attack there?" She asks. "That place would be full of people. And you know the police station is literally a block away. Do you think he'll really attack there?"

"That's his whole point. He just wants attention and a way to fulfill his motives," Clara answers. "He doesn't give a crap about anyone or anything. That is why he is dangerous and he needs to be stopped."

"We'll stop him," Aurelia decides to say. "We have to."

Otherwise, the guilt itself will destroy her spirit

Night passes and morning comes but neither of them sleep. Both are too wound up, filled with concerns about what exactly the Doctor is going to do.

Both of them hide on a rooftop of a random store, near the big market square. The streets are a little full of people and cars fill up the parking spots. This is the kind of place he'll attack, just to get Clara's attention.The Doctor, understandably, is a piece of shit.

Shattering noises suddenly erupt and screams of the people echo from somewhere. It is him. Fucking asshole.

"Let's go," Clara says instantly. Her mask covers her face as she lets the hood of her cloak fall.

It doesn't take them long to teleport to the ground, right to the middle of the square.

"Lumière!" Aurelia screams out, before she scrambles to move out of the way of the next attack the Doctor launches. Clara is stuck between the rocks, like they are a prison. And they are.

Aurelia dodges, using her swords to defend and attack. She pulls up her magic, trying to secretly push everyone in the square away, with some spell or the other. She needs to keep the Doctor's attention on her. Everyone has to be safe.

She raises her one of her swords to attack the Doctor, but the next second he moves out of the way and throws a rock towards her hand. One of her sword clatters to the ground, but Aurelia immediately grabs the hilt of the other one with both her hands. She swings and dodges, but the Doctor moves faster.

"I'll kill you first, little brat, for what you did last time." The Doctor says, rocks emerging out of the ground.

"Yeah?" Aurelia taunts. "I'd like to see you try."

The Doctor strikes, pushing the rocks towards her and she dodges. Aurelia dodges again and again and he looks more frustrated by the second. Suddenly, he summons a rock out of nowhere; literally out of nowhere.

Aurelia moves to dodge it, sword raised high but the rock never hits the blade. Instead, she feels a sick pain moving through her right leg as the rock strikes against it, shattering the bone. In agony, the other sword slips out of her hand and she is on the ground, defenceless against the man.

Pain causes her mental control to go haywire. She can't tap into her magic like this. Not when her leg hurts this badly. She can't use magic while being in an unstable state like this. Her body suddenly feels paralysed out of fear and her broken leg. She can't take one step ahead. Both her swords lay next to her on the ground and even though they are close, she can't seem to reach them. Behind her, she can still hear people's screams as they scramble to get away. In front of her walks the Doctor, with a sharp rock (shaped like a stalagmite) growing in front of him.

'Clara, please be okay.'

"Aww, did little Lumière break her foot? Such a pity for you," The Doctor's voice grates on her ears. It's sharp, deadly and full of murderous intent. "Makes it all the more easier for me to kill you."

"Screw you, you bastard," Aurelia spits on the ground as he nears her. She struggles to move, to grab even one of her swords but the pain from her broken leg has started to increase as the adrenaline rush fades. "You deserve to be in jail forever for all the crimes you have committed."

"Sweetheart, where do you think I came from?" The Doctor stops, just a few feet from her. "I didn't exactly walk out of my home."

A rock formation grows in the ground as the other shatters into dust. At once glance this looks worse. It is jagged and sharper, built like a porcupine's back. An inanimate, highly dangerous porcupine. Aurelia might have laughed.

Aurelia tries to pull up all the magic she can use. She tries to access the Phoenix's power. But she can't. Emotions overwhelm her. And a spell requires stability to be used without destroying everything. But it's out of the question. She has to protect the people, not lose control.

Harrowed, she barely raises her hands and then manages to put up a weak shield that she knows will break. But that is her only hope if she wants to live.

"Any last words?" The Doctor asks, moving closer.

"Fuck you."

But silently, Aurelia prays. 'I don't want to die. I don't want to die. Come on, do something. I have to be stronger.'

"That's not very nice," The Doctor answers, mouth curling into a frown. But later, that turns into a grin. "Goodness, you heroes are so ill mannered."

'Come on magic. Don't fail me.'

Aurelia closes her eyes, prepared to pull all her magic towards her in an instant. She hears a crack in the ground and her sixth sense goes off, telling her about the obvious danger hovering just a few feet from her. She tenses, ready to defend and prepared to die. That is the kind of life she leads.

'Shield...I need a shield,' She struggles to concentrate. Her hands tremble. Her swords are too far. Clara is somewhere, (where?) but is she okay?

'Am I going to die?'

'I don't want to die. God please, someone, Phoenix...I just need a little burst of magic. I can take him. Just a little.'

Another loud crack. Aurelia opens her eyes a little bit. The rock formation has split into multiple spikes, all aimed towards her. There is no way she would be able to defend herself in her current state. No magic will save her now. DIck was right. She relied on magic too much. 'At least I'll go out in a heroic way. At least.'

The Doctor laughs his disgusting laugh. "Well as the good people say, the show must end. And unfortunately, your show's just ended, little Lumière. Say bye-bye to everyone you know."

This is it.

This is how Aurelia dies. This is the end of road, the curtain call, her final glory day. She closes her eyes. What happens when people die? She guesses the next couple of moments will give her the answer. It's not an answer she expected to learn at her current age, but this is how life works. Especially the life of a hero. It's painful.

It's sad.

Aurelia hears the wind rush into her ears. Her sixth sense goes completely haywire. She shuts her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the pain she will feel in a second. It's all going to end.

"NO!"

Clara's loud cry suddenly echoes through and a wave of magic erupts from somewhere. Aurelia barely opens her eyes, only to see her aunt (somehow free from the rock prison) standing in front of her, one of Aurelia's swords in her hand. The sharp, spiky rocks have been blasted away. But it's not just her hand. The sword is raised and pierces through the Doctor's body, right next to his heart. Clara pulls the sword out and it comes dripping red with tainted blood. The Doctor staggers, coughing and stumbling backwards. Blood drips from the corner of his mouth and the look on his face morphs from a gleeful to a shocked one.

The sword falls from Clara's hands and so does the Doctor. He falls backward, body crashing against the hard ground. He writhes in pain for a few moments, before the inevitable happens and he goes completely still, his face frozen into that look of shock.

That is enough to restore some energy inside Aurelia. 'Clara...killed him...she...'

What would the League say? What would the world say? Clara will be in so much trouble. There is no way her aunt is going to come out unscathed from this. There are consequences to this. Consequences, questions...everything she will have to deal with as a member of the Justice League.

"Cla-," Aurelia barely manages to speak. She struggles to stand once more. The screams of the people have died down yet the destruction still remains. "Why would you do that? You-you will be in so much trouble..."

"I couldn't let him hurt you," Clara says as she turns around slowly. "You can't die. Not now. You have too much to live for. I can live with everything else."

"B-but," Aurelia stutters out, breathless. She is tired, ready to pass out any second. "They'll...the government...they'll try to stop you and the League..."

She trails off, when she sees the piece of sharp rock embedded right below where Clara's heart should be. Her beautiful cloak has started to be stained red. "Your chest...your chest, Clara. You're hurt!"

"What?" Clara looks down at the rock and the continuously increasing red stain. "I thought I pushed them all away. Oh no, damn it." She meets Aurelia's eyes with an utterly pained stare and extends an arm out.

Screw everything. Screw the damn pain in her leg. Aurelia stumbles up and grabs onto her aunt's arm. The sudden heavy weight leads to her falling and that too, on her injured leg. She almost cries out, but the overwhelming fear of losing Clara restores the adrenaline in her body.

"Stay up! Stay up, okay? Don't fall asleep! You hear me?" Aurelia manages to support her aunt into a crouching position for her own comfort. "You're gonna have to stay up. We have to get to the Watchtower!"

"I sent...I sent an emergency signal to...to Flash," Clara sounds pained. The rock shard must slowly be going deeper. It must be causing her so much pain. Aurelia has to take it out. She has to take it out even though that is not the right thing to do. She has to make the pain stop.

"Don't," Clara interrupts, as though she has read Aurelia's mind. "I read your mind. Don't do that. Barr-Flash will be here any moment. Don't waste your energy on me."

"Cl-clara, I...I...I don't want you to," Aurelia stutters out. This can't be happening. This shouldn't happen. No. No. No.

She hears a whooshing sound, like someone has cut through air. Flash materializes out of nowhere. A second later, Superman lands from the air, right in front of them.

Two of the League's biggest heroes? Here? But Aurelia is not relieved at all.

"Shit, shit," Flash swears. His expression is much darker than Aurelia remembers. Even Superman is not smiling. "Supes, take Lumière to the Watchtower asap. Tell them to ready the medbay for surgery. And get Batman there."

"Clara," Aurelia doesn't want to let go of her aunt. No. Don't let go of her. "Please..."

"I'll be okay, I promise," Clara replies, breathing heavily. Clark, Superman, is quick to take hold of her, pulling her into his arms. He lifts her bridal style and just before the red and blue caped crusader shoots off into the sky, Clara manages to say. "Someone has to take care of his body."

"Don't you worry about that. Someone will."

They disappear into the clear blue sky. Barry moves to Aurelia, whose expression has steadily morphed into a terrified one. "Zatanna or someone will come and take care of the bastard's body."

"So come on, kid, hold on to me," Barry says, comfortingly. With shaking hands, Aurelia grabs onto him. "You aunt will be okay. She's promised and Clara's not the one to break the promises she makes. She'll be okay."

Promises, like magic, are fickle.

Promises are not unbreakable.

Promises don't last.

The last echoing beep of the heart rate monitor, the horrified atmosphere in the room right after....Promises don't last.

Well, that happened. This chapter was soul-crushing to write. I literally cried while I was writing this and I was so not ready for this to happen. But it had to happen (for plot purposes lmao). Sorry about that. But I hoped you enjoyed reading this chapter. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

ONE MORE CHAPTER TILL THE END OF PART ONE

On a more important note, please check out this carrd (issuesintheworld.carrd.co) link for issues that are currently happening around the world and please do what you can to help and spread awareness. the link will also be in the comments.