"But right now, I'm swamped." Zatanna's face scrunched up as she sternly coughed twice. "In Gotham, there's a dangerous curse, one that black magicians have set their sights on. The deterrent measures I've set up in Gotham's Spirit Realm have all vanished. They'll likely attack this place. We must stop them."
"Furthermore, the reasons behind the sudden madness of Gotham City's citizens and the plant mutations haven't been fully investigated. Broccoli can only act as a temporary deterrent, but we must also find a cure."
"Currently, Constantine is plunging into madness due to guilt. He might do a lot more extreme things. If he truly goes mad, he'll have immense destructive power. We must keep an eye on him."
"Additionally, Shiller and Bruce are at risk of falling into Hell, a dilemma that concerns me too..." Zatanna sighed with remorse. "I was hesitant to tell them this before, but the reason I've been so desperate to destroy the curse is that these black magicians are, in fact, trailblazers sent by certain magic families."
"Many ancient magic families are no longer honoring their ancient glory. The friction between them is intensifying and they all covet a weapon that can bring death to their adversaries. If anyone gains possession of it, a devastating war will surely break out in the mystic world!"
"I underestimated Gotham's complexity, leading to the current crisis. But I must resolve all of these problems." Zatanna drew a deep breath and looked at Catwoman. "I hope I can count on your help."
"So, you're going to Hell to bring them back?" Catwoman frowned. "Can I go?"
Zatanna shook her head, "Your soul's quite unique, but not strong enough. You can't cast spells, and it's nearly impossible for you to move an inch in Hell. I'm the only one who can do this."
"I hope, first, that you can muster forces to resist the attacks from the black magicians. It would be best if we could seek them out and eliminate them."
"I won't be gone for long. When I return, we can address the problems of the citizens' madness and the plant mutations together. As for Constantine..." Zatanna glanced at the ward's door. "If I can bring Bruce and Shiller back, his illness will naturally be cured, if not..."
Zatanna shook her head without finishing her sentence. Gripping her magic wand, she made a decision. Just then, the ward's door was pushed open, and Brand was standing at the entrance, waving at them. Zatanna walked in first.
"Doctor, how is he?"
"The injury on his neck is not serious, merely a flesh wound. It's been bandaged already, but his psychological trauma..." Brand drew a deep breath, "Could you answer a few questions for me first?"
Zatanna nodded, and Brand glanced at the medical record in his hand. "Firstly, does the patient have a history of mental illness, including genetic or a subsequent history of mental illness?"
"He should have no genetic mental illness," Zatanna said, shaking her head, "however, he was once a resident of a mental hospital named... Ravenscan? Yes, that's the name, but he claimed that he was wrongly accused…"
"Ravenscan?" Brand showed a disgusted expression at the name. "Wasn't that the notorious mental hospital accused of patient abuse? No wonder…"
Brand glanced at Constantine, "First, he has severe post-traumatic stress disorder, and his paranoia is notably severe. Secondly, he exhibits signs of Asperger syndrome.".
"But these are not the main issues." Brand looked at Constantine's face. "Just now, he woke up for a bit. I asked him some questions and ultimately determined that he might be suffering from Dissociative Identity Disorder."
"What do you mean?" Zatanna asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Split personality," Brand looked at his notes again. "When he woke up, he thought of himself as a man named Thomas Constantine."
"He said he was born in Liverpool, England. His grandfather was a soldier in World War I, his father was unemployed, and he had a bookstore in England. Due to his failing business, he came to the East Coast to look for new book merchants to collaborate with. Besides, he also has two novels he's currently writing."
"Ah??" Zatanna was so confused and surprised that she could only articulate a single syllable.
"When I mentioned the name, John, he confirmed that he does have a brother named John, who, unfortunately, died in their mother's womb before birth. However, since nobody cared, he had almost forgotten about it. Other than that, he doesn't recognize any friends named John."
"How is that possible?" Zatanna asked incredulously, "How did he find himself to be... wait a moment, Thomas? This name sounds familiar... Oh, I remember now!"
"John once mentioned that he has a brother who died in the womb before birth, and his name was Thomas, named after his father..."
"But why would John believe he's his brother?" Zatanna asked Brand, "His brother never even had a chance to be born. Where does this notion of owning a bookstore or working with a book merchant come from?"
Brand shook his head, "That's why I'm asking you the second question: why would he suddenly split into a new personality?"
"He..." Zatanna paused, looking at Constantine. He appeared peaceful in his deep slumber, without any hint of pain.
Consequently, Zatanna turned her eyes back to Brand, "Does he really remember nothing? Does he really think he's just an ordinary person?"
Brand nodded, "I tried to mention something about magic. In response, he just chatted with me about the bestselling magic novel in England, staying clear from anything real about the mystic world."
Zatanna was silent for a moment and recalled Constantine's previous bout of pain and madness, "This is a good thing, isn't it?"
Brand stood up and looked at Constantine,
"It's hard to say. I'm just a psychiatrist, not capable of administering psychotherapy. To determine the status and stability of his personality, I'm afraid we'll have to wait until Shiller comes back. Speaking of, where's Shiller?"
Upon hearing the question, Zatanna closed her eyes in agony.
If there was something more terrible than receiving the news of someone's death, it would be having to answer the hopeful inquiries of many, ringing the death knell for their beloved friends and relatives.