Zatanna
Back to Heroes Main > Zatanna
Real Identity: Zatanna Zatara
Affiliations: The Team and Justice League
Appearances (Episodes): Humanity, Failsafe, Secrets, Misplaced, Coldhearted, Image (Illusion), Agendas, Insecurity, Usual Suspects, Auld Acquaintance, Happy New Year, Salvage, Depths, Satisfaction, Cornered, The Hunt, Intervention, Endgame, Princes All, Private Security, Away Mission (Illusion), Early Warning, Overwhelmed, Nevermore, Odnu!, Nomed Esir!, Teg Ydaer!, Og Htrof Dna Reuqnoc!, Kaerb Ym Traeh!, Ebb Tide, Forbidden Secrets of Civilizations Past!, Odyssey of Death!, Rescue and Search, Ego and Superego, Zenith and Abyss, Over and Out, and Death and Rebirth
Appearances (Comics): Players Chapter One, Players Chapter Three, Players Chapter Four, Players Chapter Five, Players Chapter Six, Last Rights, and Yesterday's Children: Memory Six
Appearances (Games): Legacy
Powers/Skills: Magic
Voiced By: Lacey Chabert
Zatana Zatara was born in 1996 to Giovanni Zatara and Sindella. Together, they resided in New York. On November 28th, 1998, they watched live coverage of Superman defeating the Mechanical Monsters at 19:41 EST. The 2 year old Zatanna imitated Superman. Giovanni Zatanna incanted and she levitated. Inspired by Superman and his daughter, Zatara decided to become a crimefighter. After Sindella died from cancer, Zatara went into a spiral until Kent Nelson suggested he join the Justice League in 2008. He cut back on his performances but when he did go on tour, he brought Zatanna with him and they performed together. Backstage at one show, she met Nelson's great-nephew Khalid Nassour, who could also perform magic. She became versed in magic but nowhere near as powerful as Zatara. Zatanna still needs to know her spells cold or have a lot of preparation time.
On October 10th Team Year Zero, she was brought along to the Cave under her father's authorization as A-03. Zatanna and Robin appeared to get along well. During a tour of the Cave, she deduced it wasn't so. Zatanna willingly went along with the Team to look for Red Tornado under the pretense they kidnapped her. The Team went to Belle Reve to interrogate Professor Ivo on the location of Tornado's creator, T.O. Morrow. When he resisted Miss Martian's telepathy, Zatanna cast a spell to get the needed intelligence. She also proved herself in battle but Zatanna was pretty sure she was grounded for the rest of her life. On October 31st, Zatanna teleported to the Cave. She was dressed as a witch and intended to go to Happy Harbor High School's Halloween Dance per Miss Martian's invitation. However, Zatanna revealed Superboy and Miss Martian's relationship to an unsuspecting Artemis. She attempted to make it up to Artemis by taking her on a girls' night out. Artemis accepted and they teleported to Manhattan.
They spent the night taking on random criminals in Manhattan. However, they were soon attacked by Harm, a psychopath empowered by the Sword of Beowulf. Even a few new spells Zatanna learned after the Red Volcano incident weren't enough. To compound matters, she was unable to take the Sword for herself and rejected for having an impure heart. Zatanna decided the best strategy was to follow a mysterious girl in white. She led them to Harm's home. Angered by this development, Harm rendered them unconscious and interrogated them. While he spoke to Artemis, Zatanna was freed by the girl in white. She escaped then set Artemis free. After the girl was revealed to be Greta Hayes, the sister of Harm, she took away Harm's power. Artemis knocked him out and Zatanna cast a spell that binded him with his own clothing.
On November 5th, Zatanna was able to get permission to come and pay a visit to Mount Justice. After a powerful magic spell created two dimensions on Earth, Zatanna was called upon by Robin to try a location spell to find the source of the spell. After some preparation, Zatanna was able to trace it to Roanoke Island. However, the Team was no match for the originator of the magic spell, Klarion. With the mission failing, Zatanna summoned the Helmet of Fate and became Dr. Fate. Since Zatanna had a natural affinity for magic, Nabu concluded she was a perfect candidate to serve as host of Dr. Fate on a long term basis. Zatara promised to become the host and bid farewell to Zatanna. Zatara asked Batman to watch over Zatanna. then became Dr. Fate. On November 7th, 09:16 Eastern Standard Time (EST), Zatanna finished moving into Mount Justice and mourned the loss of her father. On November 11th, Zatanna worked with Martian Manhunter, Miss Martian, Artemis, and Green Arrow to destroy a Flying Ice Fortress.
On November 25th, while cooking for the Thanksgiving holiday, Zatanna broke down at the thought of it being the first Thanksgiving without her father. Miss Martian consoled her. On December 1st, Zatanna wished Robin a happy birthday. She learned the birthdate from Kid Flash. After finishing her semester in Manhattan, Zatanna transferred to Happy Harbor High School in January. Batman, Black Canary, and Red Tornado became surrogate parents for her while Zatara remained as her legal guardian on paper. However, she continued to feel responsible for her father's entrapment. At one point, she and Dick Grayson dated and stayed on good terms. On February 18th, Team Year Five, Zatanna reported to Mount Justice to help in the Sandsmark case. As Dr. Sandsmark recalled seeing machinery covered with glowing symbols, Zatanna immediately speculated the Light was using techno-sorcery to build another threat. With no more leads and the world in danger, Nightwing thought of having Zatanna track Klarion's locus of sorcery. Zatanna utilized the same spell she used on November 5th, Team Year Zero, to find him after all adults went missing. The spell worked and the Team headed to Bialya.
As of December 1st, Team Year Five, Zatanna joined the Justice League as its 25th member along with Rocket. They stopped at the Cave to wish Nightwing a happy birthday. In front of the Team, she kissed him on the lips and greeted him backwards at his request. She and Rocket then attended a League briefing. Zatanna later investigated the field in Metropolis but was unable to summon enough mystic energy to breach it. As part of a plan to confront the alien who invaded, Zatanna cast a glamour spell that hid herself, Nightwing, Wonder Girl, Blue Beetle, and Sphere from sight while Martian Manhunter and Flash hailed the alien ship. However, the glamour was soon drained of its mystic energy. Zatanna was unable to recast the spell immediately and the squad was attacked by The Collector of Worlds.
On January 3rd, Team Year Six, she attended a briefing on the Watchtower about Lobo and a Krolotean. On February 13th, 21:51 EST, Zatanna was present on the Watchtower when the Zeta Shield was activated. After February 19th, Zatanna was brought in to learn a mystic ceremony from Dr. Fate. It took her several months to learn the ritual then configure the ancient Bialyan incantations to work in concert with her magic. Zatanna, per request and without much detail, gave Nightwing a Glamour Charm, enhanced with a physiomorphic spell. Nightwing gave the necklace to Artemis to aid her in infiltrating Black Manta's operation. On April 1st, Zatanna was present in the Hall of Justice helping organize what was salvaged from Mount Justice. She and Captain Marvel ran outside and encountered L-Ron, who raised a shield around the base and teleported Despero in. Despero used his telepathy to neutralize Zatanna before she could cast a spell. Eventually, Miss Martian figured out how to revive those mentally incapacitated. Zatanna possessed Mal Duncan's body and then exposed Despero to his own psychic attack. Superboy then dispatched him.
On May 27th, Zatanna guarded the Crystal Key chamber with Green Arrow and Plastic Man. On June 13th, Zatanna participated in the joint operation to free Blue Beetle from the Reach's control. In El Paso, Rocket encased him in a force bubble. To prevent escape, Zatanna reinforced the bubble with magic. The squad then took Blue Beetle to the Bialyan temple where Dan Garrett discovered the Scarab back in 1939. Zatanna dispatched Devastation, Mammoth, and Shimmer then went into a mystic trance to summon the goddess Isis. With Isis' power, Zatanna reconstructed four pillars depicting a mystic circle and initiated the cleansing ritual. Blue Beetle and Green Beetle were successfully freed. In gratitude, Jaime Reyes hugged Zatanna, who was visibly drained from the effort. On June 20th, Zatanna took part in the offensive to disable the Reach's Magnetic Field Generators. She was assigned to Pi Squad with Batgirl. She attended Wally West's funeral.
On July 27th, 19:57 EDT, Team Year Eight, Zatanna attended an emergency Justice League meeting on the Watchtower pertaining to the meta-human trafficking crisis. She was shocked when Batman, Green Arrow, Plastic Man, Katana, Hardware, and Batwoman quit the League in protest of the United Nations' growing restrictions on their team's charter. On August 1st, after 07:16 PDT, Zee Zatara went to Grant Park in Star City per the existing agreement. Artemis Crock was already present with Halo observing. Dr. Fate asked her if she understood the terms of their agreement. She replied she did and repeated it was for one hour like last year, the year before that, and the year before that. He stated she should be grateful Nabu granted the boon at all. He removed the Helmet of Fate. She hugged her father, visibly aged. They sat down at the swing set and talked. When the hour was up, she resisted and pleaded with him, shouting it was not fair and not enough time. He understood but reminded her they had to abide by the agreement to the letter. He told her he loved her and promised to see her in one year. He put the helmet back on and Dr. Fate left through an ankh portal. She dropped to her knees and cried. Crock comforted her and told her it would be okay. She questioned if it would. Halo understood why Crock came.
Around October 15th, Zatanna created a glamour charm for Forager so he could appears as a human boy when he attended high school in Happy Harbor, On December 21st, 10:12 EDT, on the Watchtower, Miss Martian informed Zatanna that the Outsiders not attending Joan Garrick's funeral would be investigating a meta-trafficking lab in Santiago de Cuba overseen by Klarion. Zatanna was aghast they were going in alone with no support. Miss Martian believed they could handle it. The second Aquaman, Kaldur'ahm, pointed out the mission was potentially too public for the Team and neither the United Nations nor Cuba would allow the Justice League to intervene. Zatanna pointed out they were going up against Klarion. She told Aquaman if he could not find Dr. Fate, she was going to help them. He reminded her she was a Leaguer and they could not risk an international incident. Zatanna promised to stay under the radar and zetaed off the tower.
In Cuba, Zatanna cast a glamour spell that hid her from non-Outsiders. Klarion teased he could see her. Zatanna instructed the Outsiders to distract him while she dealt with his monster. During the battle, Wonder Girl was merged into the monster. Zatanna levitated and incanted. Wonder Girl and the trafficked meta-teens were freed . One of the boys, Luis Garcia, begged her for help. Zatanna stated she could not deactivate their meta-genes but she could free their souls. The branding mark of Klarion on them was nullified. Zatanna used Dr. Fate's spell and used an ankh portal to transport herself, Klarion, and Teekl into the Tower of Fate. She was exhausted from performing the spell and dropped to her knees. Klarion realized where he was and panicked then became fixated on escaping but kept warping to another part of the tower. On January 25th Team Year Nine, Zatanna trained Thirteen in the Tower of Fate.
On February 14th, after 18:04 PST, Artemis Crock called up Zatanna. She met with Zatanna in Grant Park but got upset to see M'gann M'orzz and Raquel Ervin present, too. She asked Zatanna to summon Wally West's ghost so she could have closure and say goodbye to him. Zatanna tried to convince her she could not raise the dead and if they tried and failed, she would be devastated all over again. She begged her to reconsider. She tried to suggested working through it like anyone who ever suffered a loss did but Crock insisted on the inclusion of magic. She threatened to go to Wotan. Zatanna agreed to meet her half way and send her soul to limbo but warned it was a seductive place and easy to become lost then instructed Crock to emerge by sunrise of her soul would be trapped there forever. Crock stated she understood. Zatanna cast a fake spell while M'orzz created a space in Crock's mind to allow her to process her grief once and for all. Despite prompts from Zatanna, Crock refused to leave. "Wally West," however convinced her to return to the real world and open herself up again. They kissed and parted ways. Crock went through the door and was back in Grant Park. She thanked Zatanna.
On February 15th, after 18:32 EST, Black Canary and Red Tornado were joined by Shazam, Zatanna, and Rocket on the Watchtower. They watched the news coverage of the Markovian coup. On February 24th, 19:00 EST, Zatanna attended a meeting of the League, Team, Outsiders, and Batman and Nightwing's covert teams on the Watchtower. She voted for Black Lightning to be the next leader of the League. On February 23rd Team Year Ten, Zatanna was preoccupied with training her proteges and could not attend Conner Kent and M'gann M'orzz's farewell party in Happy Harbor. On May 13th, 20:20 EDT, Zatanna administered a training exercise in Manhattan for her proteges. They were tasked with capturing several Trogowogs she summoned to their plane. She congratulated them on catching six then cast a spell that caught the last three all at once. She even declared they were all becoming great Sentinels of Magic but they needed to maintain a better awareness of their surroundings. Thirteen thought they flunked. Zatanna approximated their grade to be more closer to a B minus.
Zatanna merged all the boxes of Trogowogs into one then sent them back to their dimension. She dropped the glamour spell and Henry Fyff bumped into her while crossing the street looking down at his phone. He apologized and continued on. Zatanna told Thirteen she was depending too much on her bad-luck powers and should focus on urban magic until it comes to her as easily. Zatanna told Khalid Nassour it was important to balance the natural and magical worlds then restored a tree branch he bent magically during the exercise. Mary Bromfield pointed out the Trogowog he inflated was still swollen. Zatanna believed he would belch it out soon enough since Trogowogs were pretty elastic. She told Bromfield she was thinking too much like a super hero, which was understandable given her history, but magic was not just about giving or getting meta-abilities. She implored Bromfield to use her imagination when she tapped into the Earth's leylines or other sources of mystic power. The proteges looked sullen.
Zatanna reminded them they were doing great and it was just constructive criticism then mused they were her best students. Thirteen scoffed and pointed out they were her only students. Zatanna insisted that still meant they were the best. They suddenly felt a mystic pulse pass through them. They left to figure out what it was. Zatanna took them to a carousel then cast a spell that made their rides fly in the air. She teased their next step was to keep up. Bromfield pointed out they could have taken the subway. Zatanna retorted there was no fun in that. They landed in Harlem and were nearly hit by a Metropolis Elementary school bus. Nassour wondered what a school bus was doing out at that time of night. Zatanna brushed it off and sent the carousels away. They entered Madame Xanadu's parlor, an old friend of hers. Zatanna was about to introducer her proteges but Xanadu already knew their names. At 22:43 CDT, the proteges realized they were now in New Orleans. Zatanna explained there were doors the world over that led to the parlor. Zatanna assumed Xanadu knew why they came.
Xanadu admitted she lost track of the mystic pulse but she could send them to the last known location of its locus. Zatanna found that perfect. Xanadu incanted and a door lit up. They started to walk towards it but Xanadu cleared her throat. Zatanna remembered and apologized. She conjured a roll of money. Xanadu accepted it. Thirteen couldn't believe she had to be paid. Xanadu retorted favors don't keep lights on. Zatanna thanked her. Xanadu warned her to be careful as she never felt a chaotic energy like the pulse in this lifetime. They arrived in a jewelry store and the mystically dissected corpse of Marvin Fargo. Zatanna agreed with Nassour it was an anatomy lesson, an inhumane thing that wanted to learn how humans tick. They were interrupted by the arrival of Klarion and Teekl. Zatanna and Klarion thought the other dissected Fargo. Teekl meowed. Klarion admitted they shouldn't have stopped to torture those hummingbirds but it seemed like a fun idea at the time. Zatanna cast an ankh portal but Klarion dispeled it, taunting her the same trick wouldn't work twice on him.
Zatanna cast a barrier and instructed Bromfield, Nassour, and Thirteen to pool their energies into her. It was not enough and Klarion's finger blasts shattered the barrier. He declared they were going to die. Bromfield absorbed some of Klarion's power, called on the strength of Hercules, and slugged Klarion. He got angry and fired eye beams at her. Zatanna opened a portal between them and one behind Klarion. He was hit by his own attack. She directed Nassour to take out Teekl. As he and Teekl began to fade, he used telekinesis on Nassour. Thirteen incanted and opened up the wall before Nassour made impact. Klarion split himself up into duplicates and proceeded to choke them all to death but at the same time on Roanoke Island, Child summoned Klarion to her. On May 14th, 00:01 EDT, Zatanna conjured a ball of water and splashed Nassour awake. He incanted and healed the bruising on everyone's necks. Bromfield wondered why Klarion didn't finish them off. Zatanna recalled hearing something at the time. Phantom Stranger suddenly appeared to them and answered it was a summons of pure chaos.
They couldn't believe Stranger wanted them to save Klarion. Zatanna liked the idea of letting two Chaos Lords destroying each other. Stranger called her viewpoint short-sighted and decided to give her perspective. He teleported her to Roanoke Island so she could observe the battle. She was surprised with Etrigan's sudden arrival. Child raised a layer of earth and tried to crush Klarion but as a result a surge of water from the Atlantic Ocean flowed onto the island. Zatanna cast a spell to levitate but a piece of debris hit her on the head and she dropped into the waters below. She was recovered by Nassour. When Zatanna came to, she said she felt like Nightwing's workout bag then confirmed to Stranger she gained enough perspective to know they needed more help. At 03:20 EDT, she cast "get camera ready" backwards and her appearance was restored to her most ideal state. She then suggested to Stranger that he and Jason Blood should go on a recruiting tour. Zatanna then invoked Fate's ankh and teleported herself and the proteges to the Tower of Fate.
Instead of showing up at the stairs, they arrived in the sitting room. Drained of life force, she had to take a seat. She noted Fate's flashy entrance via lightning bolt. Fate did not take kindly to them invading his tower and wanted them out. Zatanna refused and spoke of the threat of Child. Fate was already aware and had decided not to intervene. Zatanna admitted to having the same idea but she was now convinced they could not wait for the final outcome. Fate asked if she planned to stop the fight with the children present. Zatanna laid out a plan: Fate confronts Child and Klarion then she and her proteges covertly strike from the shadows. Fate felt they were not ready and tested them. After they all passed, Zatanna boasted there was a reason why she chose each one of them. Fate, however, still had not changed his mind. Zatanna wondered what more she could say to convince him to fight. They were interrupted by a doorbell sound. Fate viewed the exterior of the tower and saw Klarion demanding to be let in and asking for help. They watched in shock as Child's anchor Flaw easily snapped Teekl's death, banishing Klarion from the mortal plane.
Child turned her attention to the Tower of Fate and reduced it to rubble with a simple flame. Zatanna managed to cast a protection spell at the last second. Zatanna came to and saw Bromfield absorbing energy from Nassour and Thirteen. After Child and Flaw left, Zatanna encanted the debris off them and lifted them up. Fate was ready to hunt down Child. Zatanna asked if he would call on the Lords of Order for a power boost but he stated that was not their way nor would it be necessary. They headed through an ankh portal. At 19:47 AEST, Fate, Zatanna and her proteges arrived in Sydney but saw they were too late. Child was gone and left a Pillar of Fire in her wake. They wanted to stay and help but Fate emphasized Child was the focus. Phantom Stranger suddenly appeared and informed them he summoned other heroes to help respond to the global disasters caused by Child. It pained Zatanna to agree with Nabu. They went into Fate's portal and arrived in Manhattan at 05:49 EST where gravity was reversed. Zatanna could not believe Wizard was helping fight the pillar of fire there.
They went into Fate's portal and arrived outside Poseidonis at 07:50 UTC-2 and observed Queen Mera fighting the Pillar of Fire. They went into Fate's portal and arrived in Taipei at 17:51 NST. They observed Etrigan and Blue Devil fighting demons emerging from the base of the Pillar of Fire. They went into Fate's portal and arrived in Agra at 15:22 IST to a blizzard and another Pillar of Fire. Thirteen wished to stay but Zatanna stated they had to keep chasing Child. They arrived in the North Pole at 09:55 UTC. The proteges gave their energies to Zatanna who gave it all to Dr. Fate but even the massive spell did no damage to Child and Flaw. Child conjured a fireball behind Zatanna and detonated it. Child raised another Pillar of Fire then sealed Fate in a ice fist construct. In the Helmet, Giovanni Zatara told Nabu his life story then convinced Nabu to agree to pass the story on to Zatanna if he perished during the battle. At 10:00 UTC, Zatanna realized Klarion was now possessing a school bus. Fate freed himself.
Zatanna managed to get Fate to agree to team up with Klarion. They boarded the bus. He was adamant about acquiring a new familiar to stay anchored to the physical plane. Zatanna promised the driver Charlie Daggett and his student passengers they would return them to their proper time. Bromfield was concerned Klarion would betray them. Klarion pointed out he could hear her. Zatanna agreed but asserted they had no other choice. Klarion affirmed he could still hear them. Zatanna intimated they should be ready for whatever he might do. Klarion clarified they were inside of him so he could hear everything. At 22:50 EDT, they arrived at the Old Salem Animal Shelter in Salem. Eventually, a stray cat chose Klarion and was accepted. Zatanna suggested just calling it Teekl but Klarion wanted something totally original. He chose "Teekl." Zatanna stopped Bromfield from saying anything. They went to the ruins of the Tower. Zatanna cast a glamour over herself and her proteges while Fate made a summoning circle like the one on Roanoke Island. Child and Flaw were brought before them.
Fate and Klarion took on Child but she used their attacks to make a new Pillar of Fire. Zatanna instructed Bromfield to slowly and steadily absorb energy from the pillar. They made their move but Child was unharmed. Child lifted the glamour. Zatanna cast a shield but Child easily shattered it and knocked them over. After Child lost the support of the other Lords of Chaos, she cast fire rain. Zatanna cast a shield to protect them. Bromfield started absorbing energy from the whole area. Thirteen pleaded in vain to Zatanna to stop her. However, Thirteen and her familiar Leroy attacked Flaw's flaw with bad luck magic. It worked and Flaw fell to pieces and Child was banished from the physical plane. Fate even admitted the proteges surprised him and each demonstrated great potential. Zatanna agreed but sidelined Mary Bromfield from her plan for Dr. Fate to have rotating hosts. Zatanna tried to tell her she was too much like him and he needed hosts to balance out his less humane impulses. She took offense. Zatanna clarified her attraction to power would be detrimental to Fate. She countered the cost was worth the result. Zatanna repeated he didn't need another him. Fate was clueless.
Zatanna explained her plan and proposed Nabu would use alternate host bodies, between Giovanni Zatara, Khalid Nassour, Traci Thurston, and herself for one week then switch to another in order to keep hosts fresh and healthy at all times with the added benefit of the hosts getting to have a life. Fate inquired about Bromfield. Zatanna wanted to continue to train her. Bromfield couldn't believe Fate would agree to it. Fate concluded the notion had logic and potential and they came to trust Zatanna's judgment. Bromfield refused and asked to be sent home to Fawcett City. Fate obliged and opened a portal for her. Fate stated Nabu has agreed to the proposal but Zatara still needed to be convinced. He took the Helmet off. Zatanna convinced him by pointing out she was 24 and he missed out on her life, his own, and he sacrificed enough. Nassour agreed to it but questioned if Thurston should do it because of her altruistic desire to help and wondered if this was the only reason she took on proteges in the first place. Zatanna stressed to Thurston it was her choice. She agreed to do it.
Nassour volunteered to be the next host while Thurston talked to her father about it and put on the Helmet. At the Old Salem Animal Shelter, Zatanna conjured Dinah Lance's business card and invited them to consult with her if they ever needed help processing what they went through. Fate was eager to send the school bus back to its proper place and time but Zatanna wanted to read what the bus had gone through. Once she was done, Fate teleported it and its passengers back to Metropolis, August 03, Team Year Zero. Zatanna suddenly saw a memory of a phantom version of Superboy begging for help. She thought he was not at rest and needed help. On August 27th, 20:30 EDT, Zatanna got a phone call from Madame Xanadu. She reported despite trying for months she could not locate Superboy's spirit. On top of the Tower of Fate, she met with Dr. Fate. He took off the Helmet. Zatara reported he was unable to convince Nabu to cooperate. She took over as host and became Fate. On September 3rd, 00:00 EDT, many in the mystic community gathered at the Tower of Fate.
Madame Xanadu asked how Zatanna convinced Nabu to cooperate. Dr. Fate revealed she swore she would give them no peace until they complied. Fate, Xanadu, Zatara, Isis, Garth, Mera, Thirteen, Nassour, Jason Blood, Blue Devil, and Phantom Stranger joined hands around the bell and cast a spell but it failed. Nabu speculated Superboy was at rest. Zatanna concluded the spell failed because Superboy was still alive and what she needed was a detective. On September 4th, 20:09 MDT, Dick Grayson performed as Dan Danger in El Paso. After the show, he got a surprise visit from Zatanna. He asked if she was joining up but she stipulated she was a headliner. He was further surprised when she revealed she needed his help as a detective. On September 5th, Zatanna explained she thought Superboy was still alive. They went to the Warehouse in Bludhaven. Dick Grayson was skeptical until she showed him what she saw of Superboy in the Phantom Zone.
Zatanna got him to agree to look into it for 24 hours. He admitted his hacking skills were rusty but looked into Bart Allen's credit card history. They quickly connected the MIA Kid Flash to it. Grayson saw Kid shopping with two teenagers on some security footage on the day he was last seen. He ran a facial recognition but there was nothing so he ran a face match against collected footage. He soon matched them to a prior appearance at the United Nations when Superboy went public. At 19:48 EDT, they approached Clark Kent inside Bibbo's Diner. She put up an aural glamour that would prevent anyone from eavesdropping on their conversation and would instead think they were talking about the upcoming Monarchs-Knights baseball game. Grayson informed him he was seen with the same two teenagers in the diner. Due to his promise to avoid affecting the timeline, Kent did not give many answers but stated they were trustworthy.
Back at the Warehouse, Zee Zatara was still annoyed and hoped the Knights slaughtered the Monarchs. Grayson worked the angle they were preparing for a mission and pondered what else they needed. They went to the Watchtower and spoke to Tigress at 20:56 EDT. She was surprised they knew of five Inhibitor Collars, a Space Belt, and a Zeta-Tube power core that were unaccounted for. They went through security footage. Nightwing spotted Kid Flash's boot. Tigress went to the Warehouse with them and voiced her skepticism. Grayson soon deduced Kid Flash and the mystery teenagers went on a mission off world. Tigress recalled a League squad just came back from an off world mission that involved a time traveling Kryptonian. Grayson recalled Kid was a time traveler, too, and asked who the lead on the mission was. The trio met with Raquel Ervin at her apartment in Dakota City at 20:24 CDT. He asked who or what destroyed the Phantom Zone Projector. Ervin admitted he looked like a beam fired from a camoflauged Bio-Ship. They saw that as a connection the M'arzz and Superboy.
Zatanna realized Grayson believed her. Grayson asked her to show them Ervin's memory of the Projector's destruction. She cast a spell. Grayson deduced Superboy was trapped in the Phantom Zone and Kid and the mystery teenagers were on Bio-Ship and destroyed the Projector then realized Superman's vague statement was to protect the timeline and the teenagers were time travelers who likely knew about the evil Kryptonian. Ervin thought he was seriously reaching. Zatanna agreed with him. Grayson and Ervin recruited Kaldur'ahm for the plan. On September 6th, 00:16 EDT, they gathered in the Tower of Fate to summon Klarion for access to the Phantom Zone. Zatanna planned to trap him in a mystic circle then call in the debt he owed for her helping restore him to the mortal plane. Tigress and Aquaman voiced concern he would not cooperate. Zatanna was confident he would not leave the summoning circle and step foot into the Tower. She was wrong and he handily defeated them with duplicates of himself.
Zatanna conjured vines but he countered with weed killer. She conjured stairs around him but he blew them up. She admitted he was a mean backwards speller then invoked the Holy Balance to charge him with honoring his debt to her. He instead spared their lives and left, musing being trapped in the Tower would be worse than that bus. Zatanna remembered Klarion possessed a school bus after Teekl was killed and tasked Nightwing with finding it. On September 9th, 19:47 EDT, they pulled into a scrapyard in Metropolis. However, the bus had already been compacted into a cube. Zatanna summoned Trogowogs to restore it to working shape in exchange for any vehicle they wanted. One held out but Tigress bribed it with Nightwing's bag of Chicken Whizees to his chagrin. To add insult to injury, they chose his SUV. The Trogowogs tried to drive off in it but Rocket trapped it in a force bubble then Zatanna stated no joyriding in their realm, advised them to wear seat belts, and sent them back to their dimension.
Zatanna prepared to open a portal to the Phantom Zone in the bus doors. Kaldur'ahm added his power to hers. They all put on a Space Belt and flew in. On September 13th, 21:34 UTC, they made visual confirmation of Superboy outside Dru-Zod's fort in the Phantom Zone. They approached but Superboy was still under the effects of the Zone Sickness and pledged loyalty to Zod. They were surrounded by Zod and his loyalists. Due to their lack of experience fighting in the Zone, they were defeated. Nightwing tried Kryptonite but it had no affect. Nightwing called on Zatanna to cast a glamour spell and they retreated. Zatanna admitted she could not just zap Superbay back home because his will was acting as an anchor to the Zone. From a high point, they observed a Boom Tube appear. They modified their mission to prevent the rest of Zod's loyalists from entering it. On September 14th, 00:04 UTC, they made their way to the tube but its properties neutralized the glamour. They took up positions just within the tube. Non bear hugged Nightwing but Zatanna cast a spell that returned Non outside.
The Kryptonians used anger to summon a Devourer then Lor-Zod came from the other side. The Boom Tube began to collapse so Zatanna opened a portal back to the bus. Only she, Tigress, and Kaldur'ahm came through on September 14th, 00:16 EDT. A decisive battle took place at Metropolis' Planet Circle after Superboy refused to execute Superman. Zatanna kept a glamour around the flying bus. Before Lor-Zod could pursue Kid Flash, Tigress rammed him with the bus. They took up their positions. While cloaked by glamour, Zatanna conjured flames around Ma'alefa'ak while Kaldur'ahm pulled the Kaizer-Thrall down into the sewers with a water dragon construct. The open Boom Tube to the Phantom Zone closed. Ma'alefa'ak could still sense Zatanna's mind and brain blasted her. Zatanna attempted to incinerate the Emerald Eye of Ekron but nothing happened. Miss Martian managed to restore Superboy back to normal. Zatanna drew up a shield but Ursa-Zod began attacking it with heat vision. Zatanna admitted the Eye was magically out of her league and she needed to trade dance partners.
Nightwing ordered Miss Martian to run interference while Zatanna helped the Kryptonite-poisoned Superman. She cast a spell that sped up his recovery. She then tried to aid Kaldur'ahm but Dru-Zod threw him at her. Once Danny Chase regained control of Kaizer-Thrall, he opened a Boom Tube. All but Ursa Zod and Lor-Zod were dispatched through the Tube. She fled the planet and Lor-Zod stole the Time Sphere Rocket used. On September 16th, Zatanna attended Conner Kent and M'gann M'orzz's wedding in Happy Harbor and served as a bridesmaid. When the ceremony started, she cast a spell that started the wedding music. On November 12th, 12:00 EST, Lex Luthor told Otis and Mercy about Miss Martian sparing Metallo's life and called it a class move but he suddenly vanished from their sight. They searched for him in the office, unaware he was still present but in Rocket's force-bubble which was concealed by Zatanna's glamour spell. Luthor noted Rocket, Zatanna, Cyborg, and the second and third Aquaman were present. Rocket asked how he would prove it. Zatanna asked who would believe him. Aquaman (Kaldurah'm) got to the point and clearly stated Queen Perdita Vladek was part of their family and was now off-limits to the machinations of the Light and its members. Luthor scoffed at the notion of them trying to intimidate him. He brought up how he faced down Superman. Aquaman simply responded with a "yes" and Zatanna returned him to his previous place.