"An evil creation, in the halls of order, interesting."
Albella stroked her chin, squatted down, and set the vase on the ground between herself and Bo Bo, observing it closely.
Su Ming leaned in as well, but unfortunately, this was not his area of expertise. To him, it was like watching a shadow play on a vase.
"I always thought it was just a legend, the legend of trapping souls in objects," Bo Bo frowned, and seeing such a look on a gorilla's face gave a strange feeling.
Albella calmly exhaled a smoke ring. Though she was a bit surprised earlier, she had calmed down and was closely identifying the figures on the clay pot.
"This is not a legend, but history of annihilation. Long, long ago, warlocks liked to solidify the souls of beasts in weapons or the souls of servants in demonic puppets."
Bo Bo adjusted his detective hat: "Since it's annihilation history, how do you know about it?"
Albella gave a self-deprecating laugh: "I read books too, and coincidentally many Books of Demons have similar soul-manipulating magic."
"The gods seem to use similar divine arts," said Su Ming as he drew his Godslayer, "A bloodthirsty soul resides in this weapon. In the hands of the weak-willed, it might even control its owner."
The Female Mage glanced at the gleaming weapon and quickly averted her gaze, saying:
"At the origin of the world, there was actually no demarcation between divine art and magic; it was merely a difference in power. And now, as the world faces destruction, the boundary between them will blur."
"But this thing shouldn't appear in Doctor Fate's possession; his stance doesn't align with using such magic," Bo Bo noticed the anomaly, and the gorilla's eyes became sharp.
Albella nodded, casually extinguishing her cigarette butt: "Nate wouldn't, but the soul in that helmet, the Ancient Mage known as a god, surely excels at such things..."
The figure on the vase seemed despairing; you all, are you going to let me out or not?
The little black shadow sat down, no longer struggling, and from his posture, his despair was palpable.
Su Ming, who was watching the clay vase, was the first to notice, and the group began to discuss how to rescue him.
However, this soul-casting magic was too esoteric. Among Bo Bo's acquaintances, only a few angels and devils, or perhaps the Great Mage Morgan, might know such spells.
Albella immediately conveyed that she was helpless. Identifying the magic was one thing, but whether she could decurse was another.
She was better at destructive power, which meant using magic to blast enemies to dust.
And merging people and objects, this magic that only existed in theory, was like she said, something she only read about.
"If understood from another perspective, could this vase be a kind of prison? If the prison is broken, could it release the person inside?"
Su Ming put away his weapon and picked up the jar from the ground.
Bo Bo, stroking his furry chin, thought for a while and shook his head: "I'm... not sure. The story of Aladdin and the Magic Lamp didn't have an ending. Your problem now is how to free the Elf from the lamp."
"Why not try? Even if it fails, it gives us experience for the future," Albella agreed with Su Ming's view. Inside, they seemed eager to come out, so they might as well meet their request.
As for whether something monstrous would be released, she didn't worry at all; both she and Deathstroke were strong enough to do as they pleased with power.
Su Ming looked up at the surrounding eerie environment. Everything around him defied conventional understanding, so the only solution was to hypothesize boldly.
He loosened his grip, and the clay pot vase fell from his hand, shattering on the ground.
With a cracking sound, a man of Arab descent emerged, tumbling and rolling far across the floor.
"Well, it seems the Lantern God trapped Aladdin in the jar," Albella seized the moment to crack a joke, winking at Bo Bo, "Your story has a big ending: the Lantern God trapped Aladdin in a vase and lived happily ever after with the princess, haha."
The man emerging from the vase clearly wasn't in a joking mood. His face remained stricken with terror and shock.
"My name is Khalid Kent Nassour. I was the eighth Doctor Fate. Kent lost control of the helmet weeks ago! It was Naboo who trapped me in the vase! He brought the alien species to...!"
The man's words remained unfinished as his mouth clamped shut like clay, his slightly brown skin turning the color of burnt porcelain.
Soon after, like an artifact of history, he turned into a pile of shards before the eyes of two people and a gorilla, eventually collecting back into a clay pot.
But the figure on it, as if having died, lay in a still position, motionless.
"Tsk tsk, congratulations, Deathstroke, you just killed a Doctor Fate," Albella immediately joked, pulling out a bottle and gesturing to Su Ming as if celebrating, then took a big swig.
Su Ming smiled and shook his head, drawing the Great Sword from his back, looking toward where Diana had left: "You forget one thing, that is, you are also my accomplice."
"Hm, maybe I can add that to my ad, who cares, come, let's toast." Albella continued to laugh cynically, drinking more.
............
"It's time to rid the world of magic, so I opened the door, welcoming it back from beyond the Origin."
Floating in the plaza in front of the Divine Hall, Kent spoke to Diana, his posture aloof.
Diana sensed something was wrong. The city previously reflected above her head had disappeared, replaced by clouds and golden lightning filling the sky.
She seemed to stare into an endless dark abyss, and something seemed to emerge from it.
"Damn it, you're not Kent; you're Naboo!"
The figure in the golden helmet neither confirmed nor denied, continuing in the same monotone: "You shouldn't interfere in our world, but I have the utmost respect for you and the alliance behind you. Once everything is over, you'll find my actions were correct, and you'll feel the order of everything."
Wonder Woman couldn't listen anymore. This helmeted monster had replaced her friend and now controlled his body, committing heinous acts.
She pulled out the Lasso of Truth, ready to pull Naboo down from the sky. This guy had to account for everything and return her friend!