[Third Person's PoV]
As Danny tucked his hard-earned money into his pockets, he and Dick took off running away from the main event. But they weren't the only ones. All around them, people let out terrified screams—shrieks of panic and confusion—followed by an ear-splitting roar that shook the ground beneath their feet. Towering above the chaos, a dragon stood at the heart of the event, its eyes glowing with unrestrained fury.
In the blink of an eye, Bruce vanished into the crowd like smoke on the wind. Oliver, frozen in place for a moment, stared at the massive beast with a horrified expression, as he looked at the dragon that was supposed to be a woman.
Danny and Dick didn't waste another second. They lowered their shoulders and plowed through the nearest door, pushing their way toward the back hall. They sprinted with urgency, weaving between panicked civilians until they reached the restrooms. Without a word, they each entered separate stalls.
From Danny's stall, a flash of bright, almost blinding white light poured out through the cracks. From Dick's, clothing scattered through the air as if blasted by a gust of wind.
Seconds later, both kicked open the stall doors—now transformed. Danny hovered a few inches off the ground in his Phantom gear, glowing faintly, while Dick, now in full Robin uniform, cracked his knuckles.
Without hesitation, the two heroes pushed their way back into the event area. The scene was total bedlam—guests were trampling each other in a frenzied attempt to escape. People shoved, clawed, and stumbled over fallen bodies, desperate to flee.
Danny grabbed Robin by the shoulder and phased them both through the crowd, gliding above the stampede. From above, they could see Oliver Queen standing just a few feet away from the monstrous form of Dragon Dinah. He was shouting, arms raised in an attempt to soothe her.
"Dinah, sweetie! It's alright! It was just a dress—" Oliver's voice cracked with desperation as he took a cautious step forward.
But Dinah didn't listen.
With a snarl, she whipped her tail at him with lethal speed, treating him like an insect buzzing too close. The blow landed hard. Oliver was flung backward like a ragdoll, blood spraying from his mouth as the air was knocked clean out of him.
Danny reacted in a flash—literally. He darted forward, turned both himself and Oliver intangible, and phased them through a banquet table and deep into the floor, absorbing the full brunt of the momentum. Moments later, Danny flew them both back up and laid Oliver gently against a nearby wall.
Oliver clutched his side, coughing and wheezing, blood dripping from the edges of his lips. Robin landed beside him, eyes scanning for further threats.
"You take care of her," Robin said firmly, turning to Danny. "You're strong enough to hold her off. I'll make sure Mr. Queen gets medical attention."
Danny nodded, but just as he was about to lift off again, a hand caught his wrist in a tight, bruising grip. He turned and looked down.
Oliver stared up at him with bloodshot eyes and a fierce, protective glare. "Don't hurt her," he said through gritted teeth. "She's not in control of herself."
Danny blinked, surprised. "Dude, I'm more worried about how she's going to hurt me. That's a freaking dragon—"
His sentence was cut short by a deafening crash above them. The skyline exploded into a million shimmering fragments, raining glass like deadly confetti. Everyone's gaze shot upward.
Silhouetted against the moonlight, figures descended rapidly on grappling lines. Members of the League of Assassins dropped in from above, their movements precise and ruthless.
Several of them aimed glowing green ropes at the dragon's snarling head. The ropes launched, spiraling through the air toward her snout. Dinah roared in defiance, emerald fire leaking from the corners of her jaws, her body tensing for battle.
Oliver's eyes widened in disbelief and fury as he spotted one of the lead attackers. "Merlyn!!" he growled.
Robin narrowed his gaze. "I see Black Spider too," he muttered darkly.
But before the ropes could ensnare the dragon's snout, a batarang zipped through the air in a perfect arc—curved and calculated. It sliced clean through the glowing cords with a metallic snap, severing the lines and freeing Dinah's muzzle.
Dinah let out a deafening roar that reverberated through the entire building, shaking the steel framework and glass panes like they were made of paper. The tremor echoed so violently that the League of Assassins hanging from their lines quivered mid-air, swaying and rattling like wind chimes in a storm.
Her wings extended wide, casting massive shadows over the walls as her pupils constricted into narrow, slitted lines. Then, without warning, she unleashed a torrent of crackling emerald fire from deep within her throat. The flames erupted outward in a devastating wave, consuming several assassins mid-air.
Agonized screams rang out as the emerald fire engulfed them, their bodies writhing in unbearable pain. Their clothes disintegrated instantly, followed by their skin, muscles, and even their eyes, all burned away in seconds. It was a haunting, stomach-turning sight—one that would remain seared into memory. The flaming bodies plummeted toward the ground, thudding and squelching grotesquely upon impact.
Merlyn and Black Spider barely managed to evade the blast, along with a few others who cut their cords and fled. But the damage was done.
"Dinah, NO!!" Oliver's voice cracked as he shouted, despair overtaking his composure.
"Danny!" Robin called urgently, his voice urgent. "Go! Before she kills anyone else!"
"R-Right!" Danny stammered, his face pale as ash. He stared in horror at the charred corpses before forcing himself to look away, fighting the bile rising in his throat. Swallowing hard, he shot forward.
Dinah roared again, this time flapping her massive wings with a surge of strength that created a powerful gust. As Danny flew forward, Batman emerged from the shadows like a phantom, already in motion. He fired a grappling hook that wrapped tightly around Dinah's leg, hoping to restrain her. But the dragon-woman reared back, and with a powerful lift, Batman was torn from the ground, carried through the shattered sunroof into the night sky.
He wasn't alone. Merlyn and Black Spider had already taken pursuit, flying or grappling after Dinah, intent on capturing—or killing—her.
As Batman and Danny vanished into the skyline, Oliver turned to Robin.
"Go!" he ordered, his voice hoarse but commanding. "They'll need all the help they can get if they want to bring Dinah back!"
Robin hesitated, eyes flicking over Oliver's injured form. "Are you sure? You're in no shape to—"
"I can take care of myself!" Oliver barked, the pain evident in his expression. "Now go!"
Dick didn't argue further. He took a precious few seconds to wrap a pressure bandage around Oliver's side, securing the bleeding wound as best he could. Then, without another word, he nodded, fired his grappling line upward, and vanished into the night.
Once Dick was gone, Oliver winced and slowly forced himself upright, limping toward a narrow hallway Dinah had been blocking before. He reached into his coat and pulled out his phone with a shaking hand. Holding it to his ear, his eyes darkened with resolve. His face, normally calm and calculating, now looked as hard and unrelenting as jagged stone.
The phone clicked as the other side answered. Without hesitation, he growled, "Bring me my bow. And arrows. The heavy kind."
---
Meanwhile…
Robin arrived atop the rooftop just in time to witness a full-scale battle unfolding. Batman stood at the heart of it, his cape flaring behind him like the wings of a dark angel. The League of Assassins swarmed him from every direction, but he moved through them with fluid, brutal efficiency.
Black Spider lunged, his limbs a blur, but Batman spun and deflected with a bracer, the steel absorbing the impact effortlessly. Merlyn fired an arrow laced with explosives—only for Batman to raise his armored gauntlet and let the arrow bounce harmlessly off.
In the same motion, he pivoted and delivered a punishing roundhouse kick to a charging assassin. The force sent the man flying through the air, crashing dangerously into a rooftop vent.
Robin's eyes shifted to the horizon—where he saw Danny and Dinah locked in fierce combat. Emerald fire and white ectoplasmic energy lit up the night as the two collided in mid-air. Danny's hands were locked with hers as she tried to rip him apart. In an instant, he turned them both intangible and allowed himself to be slammed through a building, avoiding lethal damage.
Knowing his limitations but determined to help, Dick pulled out his staff. With a click, he split it into twin batons and crouched low, narrowing his eyes. Then he charged forward with stealth and purpose, joining Batman in the fray.
********************************************
+10 advance Chapters on: patreon.com/Shadow_D_Monarch3