The Watchtower Files
This piece of fan-fiction is set in the Justice League animated series continuity, right after Secret Origins.
The satellite floated in geosynchronous orbit, equally a foreboding fortress as it was a beacon of hope. The shadow that the space station cast on the earth could be seen as a sign that help was not far away – or as an ominous cloud waiting to pour its rain on the planet. These conflicting opinions pretty much mirrored the views that the general public had of the men and women based in that very space station. Since the advent of costumed heroes super-powered beings, everyone from the average men in the street to high-ranking government officials had questions on their minds. Were these self-proclaimed "forces of good" glory-hounding gods or sincere citizens who put their abilities to good use? That satellite, that "Watchtower" in the sky seemed only to further these questions.
The Justice League had been formed after several of these superheroes pooled their resources in order to defend earth from an invading alien force. Enigma surrounded each of them. Superman, Batman, Hawkgirl, the Green Lantern, the Flash and the Martian Manhunter. Still, what fuelled the controversy the most was this installation orbiting earth. Did this make the Justice League de-facto lords of the planet, ruling over governments from a higher position?
More importantly, who was responsible for the construction of this space station? Did one or more of the League members have major stakes in the economy or aerospace technology? Was it such a wise idea to lend military surplus resources to the League? Their contributions in that one act of preventing the downfall of Earth were significant, yes, but what impact would the League have on the future?
Batman, a strictly part-time member of the League, had recently released the basic schematics of the Watchtower to the general public in a press package. It was state-of-the-art, bearing faint signatures of Wayne Enterprises-developed technology. A large bank of computers, a so-called "monitor womb", commissaries, dormitories and hangars were pointed out of the schematics. The Watchtower surely held one or more secrets, though. The Justice League had reason to hide information from its adversaries – but was it deliberately concealing statistics from the authorities? Conspiracy theories regarding the Watchtower's nuclear capabilities were already all over the internet.
The connection to Wayne Enterprises was also troubling. The New York Times had, just last year, come up with a list of the top ten men likely to be Batman. Many experts the newspaper had consulted concluded that this figure of the night was most likely a team of several men that wanted to public to think they were one. Most unsettling was the conclusion that the New York Times had come to – the number one candidate was Bruce Wayne.
If this was the case, everything would snap neatly into place. The expenses needed to run the Watchtower and the technology supporting the space station and the League's personal spacecraft all seemed to yell "Wayne". Still, it was hard to believe. Bruce Wayne had long cemented his billionaire playboy image. He was easy-going and lived surrounded by luxury. Still, that was a serious possibility.
The League had named their space plane the Javelin. Perhaps it was reading too much into it, but aren't javelins lethal if put in the wrong hands?
Still, when all is said, all we can do is watch and wait. The Watchtower files remain wide open.