"How is this possible?"
Inside the House of Mystery, Montoya stared at the magical projection in disbelief. The battle had shifted in an instant, and the sudden reversal left her stunned.
She had never expected Adrian, who had held the advantage moments earlier, to fall to the brink of defeat so quickly.
"This has gotten out of hand."
Constantine spoke in a low voice as he took a drag from his cigarette. His expression had grown unusually serious.
Although he had been responsible for bringing Trigon into the labyrinth, he had never intended for Adrian's side to collapse so quickly. In his ideal scenario, both sides would exhaust one another, leaving neither capable of claiming victory.
"Isn't this exactly what you wanted?"
Black Canary shot him a cold look.
"You're the one who released this demon."
Constantine exhaled a stream of smoke.
"If you believe that, then you don't understand me. I'm not trying to destroy the world. If I had a choice, things would end with nobody getting hurt."
Black Canary's expression hardened.
"Beppo and Wizard Boy would disagree. They paid the price for your choices, and they died because of them."
Constantine lowered his eyes.
"That wasn't the outcome I wanted."
"But it happened."
Her voice cut through the room.
"No matter what your intentions were, the result remains the same. Nobody cares what you meant to do. Just like the demon you unleashed, your decisions always leave damage behind. You keep making things worse."
Inside the labyrinth, Adrian slowly rose to his feet.
The Hellfire released by Trigon had shattered his defensive barrier. Clark and Diana had been knocked unconscious instantly, unable to withstand the attack.
Adrian remained conscious, but blood stained his damaged skin. Burned flesh and torn tissue covered parts of his body.
Even his internal organs had suffered.
His enhanced body had prevented complete destruction, yet the impact still inflicted serious injuries.
The infernal flames had penetrated his defenses and left wounds that could not heal immediately.
The Doomsday template continued repairing his body, but the strange energy within Trigon's flames interfered with his regeneration.
Despite the pain, Adrian stood.
Using his super speed, he quickly removed Clark and Diana from the battlefield before returning to face Trigon alone.
The moment he reappeared, Trigon attacked.
Hellfire surged toward him once more.
Adrian raised his Yellow Lantern Ring and formed a protective shield, but the overwhelming force shattered it.
Boom!
His body crashed violently through the ruins.
Walls collapsed.
Stone exploded.
Pain spread through every nerve in his body.
Still, Adrian stood again.
Holding the Star Scepter in his right hand and the Yellow Lantern Ring blazing on his left, he charged directly toward Trigon.
The air exploded.
Light flooded the battlefield.
"Enough!"
A voice suddenly echoed throughout the collapsing labyrinth.
A terrifying pressure descended.
Adrian immediately felt it.
This new presence possessed power so overwhelming that even Trigon seemed insignificant by comparison.
The unknown energy struck Trigon directly.
The air screamed.
Space twisted and fractured.
Invisible distortions tore through reality itself, forcing everything around them to retreat from the source of that immense power.
Even Adrian felt his heart tighten.
Only one conclusion came to mind.
Whoever had arrived was even more dangerous.
"Stop."
The voice sounded again.
A small old man appeared in midair.
He wore a purple suit and a small round hat that barely covered his oversized head.
Adrian narrowed his eyes.
The figure seemed strangely familiar.
Some memory from his previous life stirred within him.
Trigon rose furiously.
The energy from the newcomer had knocked him down, and flames erupted from his body once again.
His roar shook the labyrinth.
"This is none of your business, Trickster!"
The name immediately brought clarity to Adrian.
Mister Mxyzptlk.
The Trickster of the Fifth Dimension.
No wonder he had looked familiar.
Mxyzptlk existed beyond ordinary reality. Across countless universes, dimensions, timelines, and alternate worlds, versions of him appeared everywhere, yet each was merely a fragment of the true being.
He belonged to the Fifth Dimension.
His powers could nullify Superman's abilities, rewrite reality, and ignore the laws governing existence itself.
In another timeline, Clark had established a rule with him. If Mxyzptlk spoke or wrote his name backward, he would be forced to return to the Fifth Dimension.
He and Bat-Mite were considered among the most powerful imp-like beings in existence.
He could teleport with a thought.
Create life.
Erase existence.
Rewrite logic.
Manipulate reality on a multiversal scale.
Yet even he possessed limitations.
He obeyed the rules he created for himself.
If he declared a condition, he was bound by it.
If banished, he could not return for ninety days, and any magic he had cast upon Earth would disappear.
He was both absurd and terrifying.
Facing Trigon, Mxyzptlk folded his arms.
"You're the one who should leave. You think you're allowed to destroy my Homelander?"
"You wish, Four Eyes!"
Without hesitation, he fired a beam of destructive energy.
The blast annihilated everything in its path.
The labyrinth walls disintegrated.
The explosion sounded louder than thunder itself.
It was as though countless bolts of lightning had descended simultaneously.
The collapsing structure finally gave way.
Outside the Tower of Fate, temporal storms and spatial turbulence rushed inward, shredding the surrounding ruins.
Trigon answered with a roar.
Hellfire erupted around him.
"Accept the flames of Hellfire, little imp."
His voice thundered through the collapsing realm.
The two beings clashed.
The battle reached a level far beyond anything Adrian had witnessed.
Had such combat occurred on Earth, an entire city might have vanished.
Fortunately, the Tower of Fate existed outside conventional time and space, surrounded by temporal currents that prevented the destruction from reaching the outside world.
Energy collided.
Reality cracked.
Blinding light consumed the battlefield.
The sounds of their attacks resembled colliding storms, each impact generating greater devastation.
Buildings were torn apart.
Stone turned to dust.
The remaining sections of the labyrinth collapsed one after another.
After another violent exchange, both combatants were forced apart.
Mxyzptlk immediately altered reality.
Invisible force struck Trigon.
Bang!
The demon's enormous body was sent crashing backward.
Mxyzptlk floated comfortably in the air.
"You want to defeat Homelander? That won't work. He's mine."
He pointed toward Trigon.
"But if you surrender, I might stop hitting you. Think about it, Four Eyes."
"Never!"
Trigon's voice overflowed with rage.
"You cannot protect anyone. I will destroy all of you!"
Mxyzptlk leaned forward.
"You might be right. You might be wrong. Honestly, I don't care."
His smile vanished.
"But I'm here now, and that means you don't get to destroy anyone."
"Now accept your defeat."
His body shot forward.
Almost nothing in existence lay beyond his capabilities.
Even Trigon did not frighten him.
He appeared directly in front of the demon.
Without words.
Without gestures.
Reality changed.
The Tower of Fate, moments earlier consumed by fire, became a frozen wasteland.
Ice spread across the battlefield.
Blizzards howled.
Temperatures plummeted.
Hellfire met absolute cold.
"Your flames are freezing now, Trigon."
Mxyzptlk grinned proudly.
He looked at the demon.
"Actually, I like this better. I put out your Hellfire. Doesn't that sound wonderful?"
Trigon remained silent.
Meanwhile, Adrian watched the Fifth Dimensional being with growing concern.
He had no idea why Mxyzptlk had become interested in him.
The imp had abandoned Clark entirely.
Now his attention had shifted to Adrian.
He was even fighting Trigon on his behalf.
Whether that was fortunate or disastrous remained unclear.
One thing was certain.
Being noticed by Mxyzptlk would almost certainly make Adrian's future far more complicated.
The temperature shift awakened Clark and Diana.
The heat had vanished.
Cold winds swept through the ruins.
Both slowly regained consciousness.
Clark looked toward the battlefield in confusion.
"Who is he?"
He turned toward Adrian.
"Why is he fighting Trigon? Is he our ally?"
Adrian shook his head.
"I don't know. For now, he's fighting on our side."
Diana watched the battle with astonishment.
"That alone is a relief."
Inside the House of Mystery, the reactions were no different.
Harley Quinn pointed toward the projection.
"Who is that? Why does he look a little like Beppo?"
Batman remained silent.
Constantine studied the magical energy surrounding the newcomer.
His expression grew increasingly serious.
"His magic exists on an entirely different level."
Black Canary looked at him.
"He's a magician? Someone like that actually exists?"
Constantine shook his head.
"No. He isn't a magician, and he certainly isn't a superhero."
He took another drag from his cigarette.
"Superheroes come from distant worlds, hidden islands, strange chemicals, alien technology, explosions, or rings powered by emotion. Their abilities come from within themselves."
He looked toward the projection.
"But magic is different."
"A magician draws power from dark places, from ancient sources buried deep within existence itself."
He continued quietly.
"Heroes choose how to use their gifts. Good or evil, the choice belongs to them. But magic constantly tempts its users. Unless they fight against it every day, they eventually fall."
His eyes darkened.
"Becoming a good mystic requires enormous effort. Becoming a monster is much easier."
He lowered his cigarette.
"One mistake is all it takes."
Constantine looked directly at Mxyzptlk.
"He isn't a magician."
A long silence followed.
"He's something far beyond that."
"He doesn't struggle to become good or evil, because he represents a rule of reality itself."
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