Shiro's Sanctum

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.

Betad by Malcolm Tent, Priapus, Marethyu, Old man of the mountain, Mike God of Lore, Beans

The Guild of Gamers: The Dragon

Chapter 04: Fast Fuckups

– Harleen Quinzen (Harley Quinn) –

"Any questions?" the fat bitch asked, very clearly expecting them to say 'no, ma'am'. 

"Yeah, can I go back to prison?" Harley asked, making Waller turn to her with an unamused stare. The back of her skull beeped once, making her flinch violently at the reminder of Waller's insurance.

"I'm with the psycho clown," Cheetah said bluntly. "That's a fucking dragon, besides… it trashed Wonder Woman's house, so I like it."

"I have a fucking boomerang, and that ain't no Roo," Captain Boomerang said, getting to the crux of the problem. Aside from the Enchantress, what the fuck was Waller expecting them to do to a giant, lightning-breathing lizard that had just turned Wonder Woman's lesbian paradise into a wasteland?

"Get me a gun capable of hurting it, and I'll take it down," Deadshot said, arms crossed as the rest snorted.

"Great man, mate, you've got this. I'll watch from the prison telly if it's all the same," Boomerang replied.

"Save me a seat; sounds like it'll be one hell of a show," Captain Cold laughed. Killer Frost didn't speak, but the look on her face told them that she was just as interested in hunting a dragon as the rest of them.

"Your compliance is mandatory; you can either hunt our lost asset or disobey, do I need to remind you all of the penalty for disobedience?" Amanda Waller said bluntly, making them go quiet. The fat bitch was colder than Captain Cold and Killer Frost put together. "I realise that this… Io is a dangerous target, but we aren't sending you to your deaths."

"We are literally named the Suicide Squad; it doesn't really inspire confidence, ya know?" Harley cut in, getting another annoyed look. "I have a fucking mallet, and I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm quite the snack. As in, he's gonna fucking eat me."

Maybe the fatty was hoping for that so that she could blow up their bombs on the inside of the fucking dragon. But no, she wanted him brought back alive.

"That's not even mentioning that he's gone with the League," Killer Frost continued. 

"Our agent claims Io will be joining the junior league, and he lacks the power he held during the attack on Themyscira. You are expendable, but I don't throw away assets on an impossible task. He's shown vulnerability to forms of mind control, and you will be well equipped for this mission," Waller stated, her tone accepting no argument. Ah shit, they were gonna be given Grodd's bullshit, weren't they? Because that always went well. Still, if they had some mind control bullshit, then why weren't they using it on them. She was missing some shit, and she didn't like it. 

God, she missed Arkham. Time for her daily beating? Yes, sir! 

Biting her lip, she knew she was stuck between a bomb and a fucking dragon. Blown up or eaten, what a fucking offer.

– Zatanna Zatara (Zatanna) –

Reaching Io's room, she blinked. Was that his bed tossed into the hallway? Actually, he'd gotten rid of all his furniture scattered outside the room. Knocking on the door, she waited a moment before his voice echoed through her mind, telling her to enter.

Entering the room, she felt her lips twitch at the sight of him curled up in what seemed to be a pile of old gold coins, various treasures from his lair now scattered around the room.

"I didn't get a chance to ask before, but where did you find this stuff?" Zatanna asked, making him smirk as he sat up. His sharp teeth gleamed at the toothy smile, and she was well aware of how dangerous they were. 

"You humans are so forgetful; so much of your treasure gets lost to the waves, and you just give up and leave it down there. I can sense it, find it, and once I do, it is mine," Io declared proudly, the gold he was seated on glimmering. 

"Huh, did you never run into any Atlanteans?" Zatanna asked, looking for somewhere to take a seat. Io's eyes started to glow, the gold reshaping into a pile that was the right height for her to take a seat. It wasn't comfy, but it was good enough.

"Atlanteans?" Io asked, tilting his head. His mind pressed against hers, and she let him in again as he saw her memories of Aqualad, his stories of Atlantis and what she knew of Aquaman. "No, perhaps they knew better than to challenge me despite their claim to the seas. What I took was lost by humans, so maybe they didn't care what happened to it."

He projected his own memories into her mind, images of swimming through the seas, finding sunken ships that had been forgotten by time. Chests of gold and scattered treasures his powerful senses could pick up as he collected them with surprising gentleness, returning to his lair as he found places of honour for them all.

She could feel his pride in his collection and watched him use his telekinesis to polish the marred pieces. Every piece was placed in its exact spot, sorted and placed with pride and delicacy.

Then they'd come along and exposed his hidden lair, stealing his prized piece. No wonder he'd seen them as invaders and thieves.

As the memory ended, she looked around the room again. There was a lot of treasure and artwork, but not nearly as much as he'd had in his lair. Where did he hide the rest? How did he get this stuff onto the Watchtower? 

"Maybe you can ask Aqualad after we move to the Cave. I think you'll like it; it's coastal, so you can go into the water whenever you want," Zatanna explained, seeing him perk up. She felt his happiness when swimming; he enjoyed diving deeper than most people would ever go. 

And he was fast, unbelievably so, when he was under the seas. 

"Perhaps," Io agreed, pausing as she tilted her head in curiosity. "I have not yet thanked you for your part in freeing me from the Legion's control. Gratitude does not come easy to me, especially towards… non-Dragons, but know that you have my thanks."

Somehow, she knew he had replaced 'lesser species' with 'non-dragons', but she smiled all the same, seeing that it was definitely not easy for him to put his pride aside.

"I'm happy we could help, and honestly, it was a Hail Mary plan. We had no other ideas; you were wiping the floor with us," Zatanna admitted, seeing him straighten up as she acknowledged his power. "Thank you for saving me from the pit; it was amateurish of me to fall into it; we should have seen it coming."

"I had hidden it with my illusions, meant to capture any intruders," Io admitted. "It is the way of the Blue Dragon. When our lairs are invaded, we simply collapse them and drown the thieves in sand. Once they are… finished, we collect any treasure they had and relocate," Io explained, making her eyes widen. Smart, he could easily survive beneath the desert, but there was a genuine concern that even Wonder Woman might drown beneath the rushing sands.

His lair had been deep, and she suspected his next one would be even deeper.

"Then that's an even bigger failure on my part. I was the only one on our team that was familiar with magic, and I completely missed the illusions. Your lair was saturated with magic; I couldn't even sense you until you were right on top of us," Zatanna admitted, embarrassed at how badly she'd handled that whole mess. If Io were even a little less reasonable, she'd have died beneath the sands because of her failure. Miss Martian and Wonder Woman might have followed behind.

Wonder Woman might be able to fight Io in his weaker form, but deep beneath the earth while the caverns were collapsing around them?

"You're only human," Io said almost consolingly. Somehow, that statement had a different connotation coming from a Dragon. "If you desire, we shall practise your sensing when I have re-established my lair. I used the saturation to disguise my presence, but in truth, I was away from my lair until I sensed your intrusion. I arrived shortly before I was robbed."

"I'd appreciate that. I'm one of the only magic users on the Team at the moment, so I really can't afford to miss magical threats. Raven uses magic as well, but she's not one for training with others," Zatanna admitted. Again, she felt his brush against her mind, and she pushed forward memories of Raven. She could understand why Miss Martian enjoyed this form of communication; she could feel far more from memories than just words. It was far more intimate, but she also understood why so many people really didn't like having someone in their head.

"She is powerful; why did you hold back such an asset during the attack?" Io asked, and Zatanna frowned. 

"Raven has issues controlling her powers, so they decided not to bring her along. She's new and needs complete control of her emotions. It was a concern that she might lose that control due to the reports coming from Themyscira," Zatanna admitted. Unlike most, she knew exactly what Raven was. 

Robin was highly suspicious of their newest teammate, but then he was suspicious of everything, even Nightwing telling him to stop snooping. Somehow, she knew Robin would feel justified if he learned that Raven was a half-demon child of Trigon.

Spending some time with her new teammate, she shared information about their various teammates, enjoying his company.

"Robin and Artemis, they are just humans? They have no powers?" Io asked, clearly confused. "Megan mentioned that some members were weaker, but what use is a pair of fragile humans with no powers in the fight against these villains?"

"They are, and so is Nightwing. Oh, Nightwing is something of a mentor for the team. He used to be Robin, but he separated from Batman and went his own way, kinda," Zatanna explained. "They're very talented, but I can't deny that they don't actually possess any powers or their own. I wouldn't underestimate the technology of this world, though; even a normal human can be dangerous."

"So this Robin could defeat me?" Io asked, and after a moment of consideration, she shook her head. 

"No, he's got some gadgets but I don't think he'd really be able to do anything to you in your full-sized form," Zatanna admitted. Artemis had some trick arrows from Green Arrow, but again, she hadn't seen any that were capable of actually hurting Io. "Robin is good for subterfuge, but I doubt he could challenge you."

Io didn't seem impressed, and she could see the issues there. Robin was combative, arrogant and far too suspicious of everything. She doubted he'd get along well with Io, especially when Io saw him as weak.

But maybe it would be fine? 

– Later –

"So, we're getting a team mascot? He's a cute little guy."

God damn it.

Kid Flash just couldn't keep his big dumb mouth shut.

"Mascot?" Io rumbled, his aura flaring as the Team froze. The very base seemed to shake, and Io's lips curled back into a vicious snarl. "Did you, a pathetic worm only capable of running like a coward, call me a mascot?!"

Kid Flash went to speak, shaking off his fear to try and snark, but it was immediately cut off as Io grew. The hanger was large, large enough to fit Io's full size as he rapidly grew; Wally let out a yelp of surprise as he was suddenly faced with the full might of Io, the many fanged face inches from him. She could see Miss Martian's face scrunched up in concentration as she tried to calm Io.

"Fight me, worm. I want to see if you have anything even resembling some might to back your words," Io demanded, and she could already see Black Canary's worried face. 

"Io, he didn't mean anything by it," Black Canary cut in, falling into a combat-ready stance as the large head snapped towards her. "Kid Flash, apologise."

"Wha- it was just a joke, dude," Wally yelped, feeling the hot breath coming from Io waft over him. "Chill out."

"Wally is an idiot; his mouth is far faster than his brain. Just ignore him," Megan said, which didn't help. Wally had an obvious crush on their Martian teammate, and having her insult him to the new guy clearly made Wally angry. "He's not worth your time."

"Please, size isn't everything. This lumbering idiot wouldn't even be able to touch me," Wally boasted, adding another insult to the mess. "Sure, I'll fight you; when you get tired of missing me, you can surrender and pull your head out of your scaly ass."

"Wally," Black Canary barked, but it was already far too late. Had she not specifically mentioned that their new teammate was very prideful and to be careful with their words? 

"Size isn't everything, power is. I have it, and you, Kid, do not. An inferior copy of an actual hero, hiding your pathetic self-doubts behind your jokes. Even your name shows your true nature, a pathetic child. Don't worry, this won't hurt too much," Io rumbled, sparks coming from his mouth. Wally's fist clenched, glaring up at the dragon he'd decided to pick a fight with.

"I, fine. If this is going to happen, I'm setting some ground rules. If I call it, you both stop immediately," Black Canary sighed, running a hand through her hair as she realised that they were going to fight, with or without her permission. "This is just a spar; if either of you get too badly injured, then I'm ending it."

"He will survive to learn not to insult his betters," Io scoffed, wings flaring as he looked down at Wally with disdain.

"Please, you don't actually think you can hit me, do you? Do you have any idea how fast I am?" Wally laughed, clearly seething from Io's remarks.

"Far slower than the real Flash and not nearly fast enough to outrun the consequences of your actions," Io replied, a sinister grin touching his lips. 

'Do not look so worried; I will not slay the fool.'

His voice in her head made her jump, but she just nodded as Black Canary got in between the two adolescent boys.

"Wanna place bets on who's going to win?" Cassandra asked, watching as the pair were led to the training ground.

"I watched Io shrug off my punches, but I don't think he's going to be able to land a blow unless Wally does something idiotic," Kara replied, making Cassandra laugh.

"So, Io wins then?" Cass replied, lips twitching. "Not the best start, huh?"

"Io has no self-control," Raven remarked, arms crossed as she watched the pair. "A single insult is enough to make him lose his temper, a bad sign for a being with so much power."

– Io –

I will not be insulted by a fool dressed like a banana. Do they not realise how ridiculous these hero outfits appear? Between Miss Martian and Zatanna, I've learnt much about both this team and the League they serve. The Flash is a mighty hero, but this lesser copy? I think not.

"You sure you wanna do this, big guy? We can skip this and stop you from embarrassing yourself," Kid Flash taunts, but I simply stare down at him with the confidence that is befitting a Dragon of my power and potential. My Sapphire side disapproves of fighting one of them before I have learnt of their true capabilities, but I will not be insulted. I shall crush this fool and make sure they understand my power. "Fine, your funeral."

He dashes, his speed somewhat impressing me as he lands a blow on my side. I don't move, unbothered by his attempt.

"Was that supposed to do something?" I ask, letting out a rumbling laugh. It actually hurt somewhat; the force behind his blow was impressive but far from dangerous to me. "You sure you wanna do this, little Kid? I'm sure the others wouldn't think too badly of you for surrendering and admitting your inferiority."

Kid Flash comes to a stop, back where he first started, and he goes to engage in some unfriendly banter. The fool, his speed was his only defence. Before he can even open his mouth, he lets out a scream of pain. He clutches his head as I make my psionic assault upon his mind, immediately capitalising on his vulnerability.

Showing one of the tricks I've kept up my sleeve, I use my psionics to teleport directly behind him, my clawed hand coming down as I continue my assault upon his weak, feeble mind. His agility is impressive, true, but only when he can use it.

My claw comes down on him ruthlessly, smashing him into the ground as I put my weight down on his body, pinning him under my might. As I stare down at him, my mouth sparks lightning as a simple reminder that if I wanted him dead, I could fry him like the insect he is.

"Enough!" Black Canary says, making me close my maw and turn back to the fishnet-clad heroine. "Io, that's enough. You've made your point."

"I believe you are right," I say smugly, pulling my hand back as I cease my assault on his mind. "This fly has been properly swatted; maybe he'll learn to watch his mouth around his betters."

Kid Flash gets back to his feet, clearly shaken and his costume slightly torn by my claws. I barely scratched him; I could have bisected him just as easily. 

"You cheated," Kid sputters as I look at him with disdain.

"You were moronic enough to stop moving when your speed was the only thing keeping you safe from me. You cannot expose yourself and then cry when the enemies take advantage of such vulnerability. Make no mistake, I could crush you a dozen ways. If it wasn't for the request from Black Canary that I do not hurt you too badly, I could have ended this and you all too quickly," I scoff, seeing the anger on his face.

'And you wonder why Miss Martian does not return your affections? As if she'd ever be impressed by such a worm.'

He freezes up as my voice mocks him, eyes narrowing and fists clenching in anger. 

"We are done; if you wish for a rematch, then fight me without the kid gloves. I will show you just how inferior you truly are, though I suspect you would not live to learn from your mistakes," I challenge, unsurprised, when Black Canary cuts in.

"No, that's enough. Kid, give it up," Black Canary says, and with all my mockery, the term 'Kid' makes him clench his fists even harder at the slight, despite it being his name. "Io, stop taunting him."

That almost sounded like an order, but I held back my anger for now, looking down at the woman who serves as the team's 'den-mother'.

"I didn't know you could teleport, Io. Is that part of your Psionics?" Zatanna asks excitedly, making me nod. 

"It is a simple trick for Sapphire Dragons," I agree proudly, preening slightly. I took down my target, only using the bare minimum force and without showing off too many of my tricks. Yes, this was a good start.

– Dinah Laurel Lance (Black Canary) –

This was an awful start.

Io was always going to be a problematic member; he was very powerful, but that wasn't the issue. Supergirl and Raven were in the same situation. The problem was that he was so damn prideful and saw even a shitty joke from Kid as a grievous insult.

Kid had several broken ribs from the sheer force behind Io's swipe, and that was him holding back. Did she feel sorry for Kid Flash? Not really, because she'd specifically told them all to watch their words around Io until he had settled in. 

Not insult him the moment he showed up. She knew why; Megan had been gushing about Io recently, and Wally got jealous of his crush being so impressed with another man, even if that man was a fucking dragon.

It was not the best introduction to the Team, and that was bad for the hopes that they'd be able to help Io get control of his darker instincts. She'd been informed about Io's race and how his species were pulled towards evil. She'd also been told to watch him closely for any changes in colour or personality.

Rubbing her forehead, she reminded herself that she'd volunteered to watch over the Team, but with their newest additions, that was only getting harder. Robin, the newest one anyway, was combative, spied on everyone and was just generally a dick. Nightwing had come back specifically to help deal with him.

Raven was almost a doll, terrified of showing any strong emotion and utterly focused on controlling her emotions, while Io was a prideful dragon that might develop darker impulses with no real warning.

This was going to be a pain; she just knew it. It was going to get worse before it got better because Wally was pissed at how badly he'd been humiliated in front of the others.

She needed to keep an eye on him because she feared it was only a matter of time before he did something incredibly stupid.

– Megan Morse (Miss Martian) –

She knew Wally liked to play the fool, but her opinion of him had never been lower. Everyone had been told that Io had instinctual pride and his very species wasn't capable of letting insults pass. 

And what did he do? Immediately, he decided to make fun of Io for his small size and adorable appearance, which Io already despised since he hated being small and vulnerable.

Despite that, Io sat on her bed in said form with a scowl on his face.

"Io, you can shapeshift, right?" Zatanna asked, making Io nod easily.

"Sapphire dragons are capable of changing their shape. I don't quite have it down yet, but I can do enough," Io agreed.

"So, why don't you take on a human form? You'd attract far less attention, and moving around would be a lot easier," Zatanna asked, and they both watched as Io scowled.

"Human? I am a Dragon, the pinnacle of all species, and you think I wish to take on a human form?" Io asked, making her giggle slightly. Ah, it wasn't an inability; it was a refusal to lesser himself. "I could probably take on such a form, but why would I wish to?"

Be yourself unless you can be a dragon. When yourself is a dragon, it was probably doubly true.

"You don't think the convenience would be worth it? Our world isn't exactly built for claws," Zatanna admitted, making him grumble. "Plus, you stand out a lot."

Megan smiled softly. Now, why would Zatanna want Io to take on a human form? What a mystery.

"I have noticed, but my telekinesis has proven capable of doing what my claws cannot. As for blending in? I want to stand out, not hide what I am for the comfort of my lessers," Io said imperiously, raising his head high. "I am a Dragon; people should view me with fear and awe."

"Still, it would be good to master your shape-shifting, right?" Megan asked, making him pause. She'd just made it a challenge, something for him to master and be proud of. "I mean, if Beast Boy can master his shapeshifting, you can too, right?"

"True, my Sapphire nature is still new to me," Io reluctantly agreed. He gave her a displeased look, well aware of what she had just done. He couldn't accept that anyone was better than him. "It would be tactically wise to master my talents before I gain more."

'You aren't as smart as you think you are. Do you believe me so easily manipulated?'

She giggled, giving him a look.

'Nope, just very competitive.'

He didn't refute her claim, making her smile as Zatanna frowned, obviously noticing the byplay.

"Martians are shape-shifters as well, so I can help you. Taking on a human form really isn't that hard," Megan offered, reaching out and pushing her own experiences practising the human form towards him. 

It was very nice to have someone else who enjoyed telepathy; it was just the most natural way for her species to communicate, and words didn't have the same intimacy. She suspected it was that intimacy that the rest of her team found so uncomfortable, but not Io.

'Tch, what a crude form. It doesn't even have scales.'

"Your scales are beautiful," Megan agreed out loud, for Zatanna's sake. "They're such a beautiful shade of blue."

"Of course they are, royal azure blue, befitting my race," Io agreed, preening as he always did when someone complimented him. "And here I am, trying to get rid of them. Tch."

His form shifted, growing and reshaping as they both watched in interest. Well, he got the shape, right?

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Io looked down at his form with curled lips. Still covered in blue scales, with his horn having split and become two separate smaller ones at the side of his head, he didn't exactly look human. His face was still elongated, shaped similarly to his true face as he experimentally stretched his jaw, showing off his fanged teeth and long, thick tongue.

He held out his hand, and she was impressed that he had the correct number of digits. She got that wrong at first. Clenching his fist several times, he wiggled his fingers with a thoughtful frown.

She did spot one minor issue, though she wouldn't call it a small one, as Zatanna's eyes widened and moved downwards past the scaled chest. Io was not wearing clothes, and between his legs hung a large scaled manhood. 

"I don't like it," Io decided, and as quickly as he shifted, his body shrunk, and the small dragon sat in his place again. "It felt wrong."

– Io –

My memories of before I was stuffed into this body were coming to the surface, and I didn't like it. It felt wrong, twisted even. I am a dragon; I need no memories of the time I was lesser.

'Are you okay?'

Megan's mind brushes against mine, sending feelings of reassurance and comfort. 

"I dislike being reminded of when I was human," I scoff, making them both freeze.

"...what?" Zatanna asks.

"Hm, did I not mention? I was human once; some strange man ripped out my soul and reincarnated me into this superior form. Being humanoid reminds me of before, and I don't like it," I grumble, flapping my wings as I examine my tail. Yeah, this is the correct number of limbs. Four is just wrong, stupid inferior beings thinking that their primitive forms are correct. Barely better than the monkeys they came from. 

"...no, you didn't," Zatanna says, making me blink as I go over our many conversations. 

"Hm, it is irrelevant. I am the Dragon; such a dark and wingless part of my glorious history is better left forgotten," I decide, watching them both share a look. "Let us just agree that I could take on a human form but don't want to. There's no need for any more practice."

Nodding to myself, I make a note to get a servant to deal with the finicky stuff that requires fingers. Yes, that's much better than taking on an inferior form.

— Bonus Scene — Hippolyta

Themyscira had been devastated by this attack.

They had been attacked many times before, but not since their enslavement at the hands of Hercules had they been so crushed. Circe and Aresia had done more damage than any other attack because while their time under Hercules had been degrading and lengthy, the damage was more mental than physical.

Between Ares' forces, Circe's magic (turning sisters against each other as she muddled their minds) and most importantly, the power of the dragon they'd unleashed on them, Themyscira had lost almost a third of its sisters.

Countless buildings were destroyed, entire stretches of the island had been laid to waste, and it took days for the sandstorm to die down and allow them to start to gather their dead and count their losses. 

The Amazonians were vulnerable, and as their queen, it was her duty to protect them from the outside world. Other vultures were starting to test the waters, villains seeing opportunity in their weakened state. The Gods were dealing with their own issues and rarely got involved directly as it was anyway.

Ares was missing, and Hades had retreated into the underworld, where they suspected he was planning something. If Aresia knew anything about the God of War's plans, she was not speaking. Hippolyta suspected that Aresia knew nothing, the tool that she was. 

Her mind went back to Io, the storms raging around the island as she shivered. She had never felt so powerless before, not even at the hands of Hercules, but it had shown her just how dangerous the outside world truly was. 

They needed more power if they were going to protect themselves, and Lady Athena had suggested where she could find it. After all, she'd never seen something as powerful as Io before. 

It would be hard; her people still saw him as the beast that destroyed their island, but she saw the wisdom in Athena's suggestion. Firstly, she would invite Io to the final judgement of Aresia, and see just how reasonable Io could be without Circe's magic clouding his mind. 

Perhaps after that, she could think more about Lady Aphrodite's suggestion. The Amazonians needed to repopulate, and she didn't know what to think of her suggestion that they were indeed compatible with Io.