Secret Origins #27

A SYMPHONY OF SHADOWS: THE SECRET ORIGINS OF ZATARA AND ZATANNA

Zatanna is drawn to Mont Saint-Michel, where she finds that Felix Faust has captured Doctor Mist. Zatanna is unclear as to why had Faust summoned her to the place and the evil sorcerer decides to give her understanding by separating her soul from her body and allowing her to go into Mist's mind and learn everything about her past, her heritage and her origin.  Several thousand years ago, Doctor Mist existed as a mortal called Nommo in the secret Afrikan city of Kor, where he ruled supreme as the guardian and chosen disciple of the mystic Flame of Life. Even then, the Flame was coveted by Felix Faust, who attempted to kill Nommo to take the Flame for himself. However, Nommo absorbed the Flame and used its power to hurl Felix Faust into another dimension, sadly destroying Kor in the process. In order to nurture the growth of the Homo magi and produce a candidate powerful enough to be his bride, Nommo created magical jewels known as the Stones of Life. He gave the stones to the Homo magi to aid in their growth and over the course of the centuries, the Homo Magi helped mankind develop and thanks to some of their greatest minds.  Eventually, all that evolution and developing came to a halt when World War I happened and Doctor Mist realized that Felix Faust had returned to Earth. Mist became aware that Humans and Homo Magi can be forced to act badly by outside forces and so he decided to create heroes, who would stand against evil and prevent Homo Sapiens and Homo Magi from destroying each other. Sargon the Sorcerer, Doctor Occult and a few others became known for their heroics, but there was a man among them, who became most prominent for Mist and to the world. The descendand of a direct lineage of great Homo Magis had been born under the name of Giovanni Zatara.  As a kid, Zatara was given a box full of magical artifacts from his grandfather, Luigi Zatara and upon realizing his natural abilities for magic, the young Zatara decided to pursue a career as a stage magician. However, on his early shows, his act was not well received. Doctor Mist saw the potential in Zatara and manipulated the circumstances in order to have Zatara find a book of ancient sorcery from one of his own ancestors: Leonardo da Vinci  Da Vici was notorious for keeping texts in reverse and when Zatara attempted to read them, he realized they were spells hidden in plain sight. Zatara started experimenting with his new powers and improved his magical act, gaining notoriety as one of the best magicians in the field.  Unfortunately, a new evil was unleashed in Europe when Adolf Hitler invaded Poland and retrieved the Spear of Destiny, twisting his already sick mind and driving him to start World War II. In response, many heroes appeared to fight the evil menace of the Nazis. Zatara also used his abilities to stop the Axis forces infiltrated in America and soon, he started acting as a force of good everywhere he went, which gained him a position among the great group of heroes known as the All-Star Squadron.  Eventually, World War II came to an end and the heroes of the past were deemed as unnecessary, disbanding all organizations like the All-Star Squadron and the Justice Society. Zatanna continued his stage career as well as his adventures against evil, but Doctor Mist grew bored with his own existence and decided to meddle with Zatara's life and provide a descendant which Mist would tutor to become the greatest sorcerer of all time.  Doctor Mist sent Sindella, a pure Homo Magi, to meet with Zatara and engage with him romantically. As a result, Zatanna was born and after fulfilling her duty, Sindella faked her death and returned to the hidden city of the Homo Magi. Doctor Mist had hoped for a boy to become his disciple, but considering the great potential of Zatanna, he decided to take her as his own.  When Zatanna turned 18, Mist used the evil Allura to capture Zatara and send him to another dimensions, placing a curse upon father and daughter if they ever were reunited. All these efforts to kee Zatanna free for his tutelage. However, both Zatara and Zatanna started searching for each other and Mist was unable to stop them.  Zatanna was eventually reunited with her father thanks to the assistance of the Justice League, a group of heroes which she soon became a member. Much like her father before her, Zatanna balanced her stage career with her heroic feats and on certain occasion, father and daughter worked together to find the secret city of the Homo Magi, where they learned Sindella was alive, but ultimately sacrificed herself out of love for them and they lost her once again.  Not much later, the Crisis happened, unleashing the Great Darkness and many of Earth's sorcerers gathered to fight the tremendous evil. As a result, Zatara was killed, leaving Zatanna to continue her career alone. Zatanna eventually confronted Wotan, who had captured Zatara's soul, preventing it from reaching the afterlife, but with Spectre's help, Zatanna defeated Wotan and released her father's soul, giving her a second chance to say goodbye to him.  Finally, Zatanna's soul returns back to her body, where she understands why she was summoned by Faust to that place. Faust still seeks the Flame of Life, but he couldn't take all that information from Mist, as he couldn't penetrate his mind. Instead, he pushed Zatanna into Mist's mind and forces her to reveal the location of the Flame. However, Zatanna explains that the Flame is no more, consumed by Mist inside his mind. Enraged, Faust attacks them, but the combined powers of Doctor Mist and Zatanna are enough to obliterate Faust.  After these events, Zatanna resumes her normal life, having a greater understanding of her origins, her powers and the universe.