14 Wonder Patrol

Despite yesterday's Dragon Demon fiasco, I was feeling much better the next day. It seems that the transformation really did require a certain amount of energy and would replenish as long as I got some rest.

I needed to get a better handle on my talismans and practice whenever I could. In addition to the Ox, Horse, Monkey talismans that I have already tested and am familiar with more so than the rest. I still had the Sheep, Dragon, and Rat talismans to more thoroughly test. I was saving the rest of the talismans like the pig, rooster, rabbit and whatnot for when I had a durable training partner to test them against.

Taking on the moniker of Zodiac was simply a homage to the 12 Zodiac signs of my talismans. And, while there was a vague connection between the animals in question and the powers, it wasn't that easy to predict the power each talisman would display, unless being priorly informed about it.

I never thought that one day, one of my problems would consist of keeping track of and testing so many talismans. Each one on its own had countless applications, depending on how you used them and what their limits were. Even the ones that seemed the most simple and obvious in what they were for still had layers to be uncovered.

Lets take the Sheep talisman for example. On its own it had virtually no combat ability, but more than made up for it by being incredibly useful in intel gathering.

Unseen, unheard, intangible and able to fly and travel hundreds of miles was just one aspect of it. It's other ability also allowed a person to dreamwalk into other people's minds while they slept, and could proof useful depending on its limitations. I mean, could it be used to possess people? Does it have different effects on telepaths? Can I use it on someone else?

The Rat talisman was also highly situational and esoteric. From what was seen in the show more often than not, it was more trouble than it was worth. Primarily because it didn't give the user control over the animated vessel and only allowed one vessel at a time to be animated. I mean I could theoretically animate a statue of Superman or something, but it would just end up a weaker version of the real thing, since it was made out stone.

The horse talisman was obviously useful for healing, but there wasn't much else to it when it came down to combat. But, questions like if it could heal genetic defects or other exotic effects like curses or negative effects caused by magic remained to be seen.

Now, when it came to offensive power the Dragon talisman was the most powerful talisman I had in terms of pure striking power. Still, I had to make sure that I could control the output since I remember Jackie Chan using it to blast a hole through Shendu whilst in his demonic/dragon form while he was powered by the rest of the talismans.

It would be a shame if I accidentally killed someone because I didn't mean to and lost all the trust I've managed to gain with the hero faction. Apparently killing is a big no no as far as Bats was concerned. Something I now realize is kind of ridiculous, when you consider that is the real world and not a comic book. They basically had superpowered serial killers running around and for some reason the state never considered the death penalty.

Still, it was too early to discuss this kind of stuff and maybe I was missing some crucial piece of information that would explain why repeat offenders are being imprisoned instead of just put to death.

On another note, although my training has progressed I found myself thinking about ways I could get better results. It was bad enough I was starting so late while most of my future team mates already had years of experience. Even the rookies like Miss Martian and Superboy had a lot going for them. Martians in general are already overpowered and Superboy was a half kryptonian clone with telepathically implanted memories. So, as the only magically powered teammate I had to prove myself.

Over the past 2 months and change, I had focused on getting my strength and speed to their limits. Practiced with my talismans. Drilled my martial-arts. And, practically mastered my enhanced strength state while using the Ox-Talisman. I still wasn't sure how strong I was compared to the others, but at the very least I could lift a car with little effort and my limit seemed to increase each day. I wasn't sure when and if it was going to ever stop, since I doubt someone have ever pushed it this far.

Therefore I placed special emphasis on Martial-Arts and my physical capabilities. After all, not all of us were physical gods like Superman and it was generally a heroes bread and water. Plus a better base body means my talisman will become more potent.

*Sigh* I really needed to get out of here. I've been cooped up for far too long, and at this point I don't care if Falcone finds me, in fact if it weren't for Batman insisting he could handle it and him explicitly saying my interference would only make it worse. I would have already went and had a 'talk' with Falcone and his gang about criminal etiquette and the importance of not antagonizing people with powers without proper investigation. I mean as mobsters they should really have higher standards than your run of the mill criminals. Tch. People are so unprofessional these days. Just going around accusing me of stuff I didn't do, just because I had powers.

I got up from my bed and started doing some stretches to loosen up my muscles, something Dinah stated was important if I wished for my body to be limber enough to practice marital arts. A few minutes later I was done and was heading out to get something to eat and maybe see if I could do something different today other than training.

On my way to the cafeteria I was surprised to run into Wonderwoman. I had already worked with her on several goodwill missions for the league i.e she basically acted as my bodyguard/spokesperson as I went around healing people. Surprisingly this time she was dressed in some casual attire, and was sporting a huge grin on her face.

" Ah, Jason I'm glad to see you're already up." She said.

" Early bird and all that." I said casually.

She hummed in approval and said, " I was thinking we could get some breakfast and then go out for a patrol if you're up for it."

" Really? I didn't know you went on patrols." I said.

" Well, I usually don't since most of my time is spent on diplomatic missions or league business. But, I do occasionally patrol from time to time. Being seen out in public can be as much as a detternt as actually stopping a crime in progress. People tend to think twice about it, if you know what I mean." She said.

" I would love to, but didn't Batman say I had to stay here until he solved the Falcone issue." I said, eager to have a change of routine. This was the first time a league member has ever asked me to go in patrol with them, since I was usually kept at the hall of justice for my 'safety'.

" Don't worry about it, if anything happens I'll be there. Plus we aren't going to Gotham." She said

"Then where are we headed?" I asked.

" We're going to Star City." She said.

My eyebrow rose, "Isn't that where Green Arrow and Canary normally patrol?"

We were almost at the cafteria at this point and while Wonderwoman opted for a simple breakfast of fruit and some buttered toast. I went for a larger meal consisting of eggs, sausages and some pancakes to compensate for all the exercise I've been doing.

" That's true, but they're busy with a mission out of town and they have asked me to cover for them." She said, before she bit into an apple.

A few hours later a woman dressed in a star spangled suit and an eagle could be seen flying in the sky right above Star City. The woman was also talking to said Eagle and surprisingly enough the Eagle was nodding its head as if it understood.

" I find it interesting that your clothes dissappear when in animal form, but reappear when you turn back. It seems oddly..."

" Nonsensical?"

" I guess you could say that, but you can't deny its usefulness." She said.

" I still don't have a full understanding of it myself, but my current theory is that I'm not actually transformed into an animal, but that instead that talisman works by storing my real body into a pocket dimension and this is just a projection I can control. It would also explain why anything on my person simply dissappears and why I can still talk and think like a human whilst I'm an animal. " I said.

" But if that's true wouldn't you be invulnerable while transformed? " She asked thoughtfully.

I chuckled. " You caught on to that didn't you? No, I still take damage and if I revert I retain that damage on my real body. It also wouldn't explain how I am able to use the senses and inate abilities of the creatures I turn into, like flying or enhanced vision and hearing if it was just a simple projection. "

" A mystery indeed. I could perhaps ask for permission from one of the old gods and have you meet them. Your talismans are unlike anything I've ever heard of and some of their abilities remind me of the gods. " She said.

I shrugged." Sure, I'd be happy to know more about them if it's possible, but are you sure that it's okay for me to meet them?"

Diana let out a chuckle as we flew, heading towards our destination. " It's fine. Unlike other religions, our gods are a little bit hands on. At the very least requesting a meeting shouldn't be a problem. "

I shrugged, which kind of looked weird since I was an eagle. " I'll take your word for it."

The sound of yelling, followed by the sound of gunshot interrupted our conversation and before I knew it, Wonderwoman started increasing her speed.

" Come on, it seems like there's trouble up ahead. Stick to me and follow my lead. "

(Chapter End)

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