Chapter 3
The only challenge Kyla saw with gaining an audience with Wayne was getting him alone with no prying eyes and ears. She knew that approaching him in full meta-human form would alarm him and probably not gain his trust. She thought it best to start with the most obvious way and try to book an appointment with him. When she called his office to set one up, his secretary conveniently told her that "Mr. Wayne is all booked up for the rest of the year." Kyla wondered if the assistant heard her chuff in response. She wasn't stupid, but because she wasn't someone of a political or famous level, Bruce Wayne had no time for her.
Her next option was to corner him out in public, but it was hard trying to learn his schedule. Wayne managed to slip into his limousine undetected, so she had not been able to follow him home. For someone so rich and famous, he kept to a reclusive lifestyle. It was rare for him to be seen out in the general public, but Kyla got her chance after stalking the entrance to Wayne Industries for a week.
Bruce Wayne exited the glass doors, cell phone against his ear. Kyla tuned in with her extra strength hearing to listen to his conversation.
"Lucius, I need that synthetic by the end of the week. The suit's not holding up like it used to, and for the most part, neither am I," Wayne said.
"The manufacturer has had some issues with customs in southeast Asia which has put everything behind schedule, Mr. Wayne. He assured me that you would have it this week."
"If I need to go get myself, I'll do it," Wayne sighed.
"I don't doubt that, Sir, but he promised it would be in two days," Lucius said.
"If it's not halfway across the world by tomorrow, I'll handle it myself."
As he spoke to the man on the other end of the line, Bruce scurried down the sidewalk with his hand in his pocket. He appeared to be in a hurry, but Kyla didn't waste her time heading toward him. His conversation ended, and as he slipped the phone into his jacket pocket, Kyla strode up to him.
"Excuse me, Mr. Wayne?"
Caught off guard, he turned and looked at her with wide eyes. She noticed his body tense up, and she knew immediately that he was already on the defensive.
"Yeah," he responded.
"Could I get a minute of your time?" she said.
"Actually, no, I'm sorry. I'm on my way to a lunch appointment, but you can call my assistant to get an appointment."
Wayne turned at the street corner, but Kyla wasn't ready to give up.
"I've already tried that. I've been waiting to catch you. I need to talk to you about-"
"Look, lady. I'm extremely busy right now. Just call my assistant."
Bruce walked faster, and she knew he was trying to get away from her. It wouldn't be a challenge to keep up with him, but she needed his attention.
"It's about Clark."
Even though he kept his speed, he slightly turned his head, and Kyla knew she had his attention now.
"Clark who?"
"Clark Kent," she said, keeping the same speed.
"The Daily Planet reporter? What about him?"
"No, your friend. My-"
Bruce stopped with such abruptness that Kyla almost tripped over her own feet.
"Listen, lady. You have me confused with somebody else. I didn't know Mr. Kent personally. Now, please, leave me alone."
Kyla had to bring out the information ammo before she completely lost him.
"I saw you and that woman at his funeral. Stop playing dumb, Mr. Wayne," she said as her irritation grew every second that he didn't relent.
The look of impatience upon Wayne's face morphed into a concerning ire. His brow furrowed, and his eyes narrowed. The muscles in his jaw swelled, and she knew she'd hit the right button.
"That's it. If you don't step away from me this second, I'm calling the police."
He pulled his cell phone out from his breast pocket and began to dial the number. She didn't want the attention from the police, and it was obvious Wayne was in no mood to talk, so she glared at him as she stepped away.
"We will talk about this, Bruce. You owe him that."
Wayne turned on his heel, shoved the phone back into his pocket, and continued on his path down the street before he disappeared around another corner. Kyla cursed and shoved her hands into her jeans. Now what was she supposed to do? Use her powers to make him listen? That wouldn't make her an ally particularly quick.
She walked back to the memorial park and sat down on an empty bench. The box with Clark's gift crunched inside her backpack. That little sound gave her an idea. If Wayne only saw her as was a nutjob stalker, then she would have to appear to him as something different. Something he would recognize.
That night, Kyla waited in the forest just beyond Wayne's glass manor. Her plans were to approach him either in or outside his home in the suit Clark gave her. The uniform she donned made her itch. Although it breathed well, she felt suffocated under the tight fabric. She had to admit that it did give her a sense of confidence and power she'd never felt before. The House of El shield glimmered in the moonlight, and she could see small Kryptonian writing engraved inside the S. It was too bad she couldn't read it, but the opportunity to pay Kelex another visit seemed hopeful. Somewhere in the databanks of her ship had to be some kind of Kryptonian dictionary.
The sound of rushing water yanked her out of her thoughtful daze, and she searched for its source. Forty yards off shore, a whirlpool type hole opened up in the lake. Before Kyla could blink, a ramp surfaced from underneath the water that led straight to land.
"What the-" she gawked.
A vehicle burst from the gaping maw of the lake, and it roared past her. It sat low to the ground with a slim, sleek body with tires that reached the height of her chest. The loud rumble of the engine echoed across the lake and forest. She watched the armored vehicle disappear beyond the trees, and she wondered if she should follow it or wait for Bruce Wayne. Her curiosity bested her, so she soared off after the car and followed it into downtown Gotham City.
The vehicle pulled into a dark alleyway and sat in silence. Whomever was in the car, they were waiting on something. Before she could use her x-ray vision to peek inside, a window burst into shards three stories up, and three figures dressed in black hoodies jumped out. She heard an electronic beep, and a thwap sound followed.
From the top of the vehicle, an opening appeared, and the driver shot straight up in the air. Upon closer inspection, she noticed the driver had used some sort of gun to shoot a grappling hook onto the ledge of the building. He rocketed through the air and landed on the fire escape platform one level below the broken window.
Once in the moonlight, Kyla managed to get a good look at the driver. He was dressed in a dark gray outfit with a black cape. Atop his head sat a cowled mask, and instantly Kyla knew who he was… the famed Batman, Gotham's dark knight. She'd read stories about his vigilante jaunts, but she never thought she would see him in action.
The three perpetrators scattered in different directions. One continued up the fire escape, one hopped across the alleyway and nearly fell to his death when he caught the guard rail with one hand, and the third tried to shimmy down the fire escape past the caped crusader. The Batman retracted his grappling hook and fired it at the perp trying to scale the building at the top. The hook wrapped around his neck, and Batman yanked him down to his level. With his other hand, he threw a sharp, bladed object resembling a bat at the person climbing down the fire escape. It ricocheted perfectly off the steps and struck the man in the ankle as he leapt to the ground. The blade dug deep into his foot, and he screamed with agony as he clutched it.
The third criminal managed to climb his way to the top of the opposite building and dash off across the roof. Kyla saw an opportunity to help, and she took it. She zipped in front of the man, and he crashed into her. The hooded man fell onto his back and looked up at her stunned.
Kyla reached down and picked him up by his jacket collar. The man squirmed in her grip as he screamed in protest. The Batman wasn't far behind him.
"Sorry, thought I'd step in and catch this one for you. Seemed like you had your hands full," she said.
A deep, mechanized voice spoke to her from the darkness, "Who are you?"
When Batman approached them, Kyla used her x-ray vision to see the mystery behind the cowl. She was shocked to see Bruce Wayne's face glaring back at her. In her surprise, she almost dropped the squirming perp but held him fast.
"Funny you should ask that as you wouldn't give me the time of day earlier," she said.
"Why are you wearing that symbol? You don't deserve to bear that mark," he hissed.
Irritated with the questioning and the little rat putting up a fuss, she tossed the criminal at Batman's feet. He yelped in pain as he skidded across the rooftop gravel.
"You're welcome," she frowned. "And who are you to say I can't wear this? I came here to talk to you about a mutual friend of ours."
Batman bound the man at the hands and feet with zip ties and threw him over his shoulder. He turned and proceeded to walk back towards the ledge.
"Wait a second," she barked. Kyla flew in front of Batman and blocked his path. "I'm not done talking to you."
As if he hadn't heard her, he brushed past her and jumped off the side of the building. What in the world had Clark seen in this guy? He was impossible to deal with. Batman had gathered all three individuals into a pile in front of his vehicle. The one with the blade sticking into his Achilles heel cried out in agony, and Batman punched him, knocking him out cold. The second wriggled like a worm on a hot sidewalk as he tried to free himself from his constraints. The third lay motionless on the ground next to them.
Kyla soared down and landed in front of the Batmobile, blocking its way out. She could hear police sirens getting closer to their location.
"Look, Cla-, er Superman is, I mean, was my brother."
The top of the Batmobile opened, and Batman crawled inside without a word. This infuriated Kyla. The Kryptonian blood coursing through her veins boiled with anger, and her eyes began to glow red. She placed her hands on the hood of the car, preventing it from going anywhere.
"Not here," Batman mumbled with his mechanized voice. "Meet me at Arkham."
"Arkham? Arkham Asylum?" she asked.
The Batmobile rumbled to life, and the tires squealed under the tension of her grasp. She released her grip and darted out the way as the vehicle soared out of the alley and down the street. Police cars then pulled up to the alley, and blue and red lights bounced off the walls of the building. Not wanting to be seen, Kyla rocketed into the air and chased the Batmobile through the streets of Gotham.
They made their way up the hill to the large manor sitting at the top, and the iron gates of Arkham Asylum welcomed them. Outside the front doors was a commotion. Arkham guards, sat on their knees outside in the plaza with a group of people drawing down on them with guns. The Batmobile came to an abrupt halt just outside the gate, and Batman hopped out.
"You want to prove yourself, then help me round these guys up without anyone getting killed. Maybe then we'll have that talk," he said.
If this was how he wanted to play it, then Kyla would oblige him. Before he could get two steps past the asylum's gate, Kyla shot past him and took out the assailants within a matter of seconds. Since she didn't have zip ties handy, she opted to just knock them unconscious. By the time Batman was able to get close to the group, the bad guys were out cold and the weapons lied next to the quivering Arkham guards.
The search lamps at the top of the building illuminated the entire group, and she turned to Batman to relish in her accomplishment.
"Is this what you wanted?"
"You?" Batman said with a skeptical tone.
It hadn't occurred to her that Batman had not been able to see her face in the alleway. Judging by his reaction, he had just then gotten a good look at her face and remembered it. The guards reclaimed their weapons and thanked them for the help. As he made his way back to the Batmobile, Kyla followed with victorious content. Finally, he had to listen now.
"Get in," he demanded.
Without another word, she hopped in the passenger seat next to him.
"Now that you mention it, you actually look like him. Why is it no one has ever mentioned you?"
The doors closed, and the Batmobile rumbled to life.
"Because I asked Clark not to. I didn't want the same attention he got. I enjoy my anonymity."
"So why now?" he asked.
"I saw you at Clark's funeral, with that woman, and I heard your conversation about finding other people like her. Is she Kryptonian?"
Batman didn't respond. He threw the vehicle into higher gear and whipped around a corner. Kyla wondered if she'd made a mistake getting into the vehicle with him.
"No. She's not Kryptonian. I really don't know what she is, but she's from a powerful race of warrior women on a secret island."
Kyla couldn't believe what she was hearing. Was he putting her on? Kyla didn't respond and stared out the window as the city zipped by them.
"You still didn't answer my question. Why now?"
"There was something in your voice when she asked you why they needed to fight. It's been eating at me since that day. I've been biding my time, trying to figure out a way to approach you." She sighed, "I want to help. Whatever it is that you feel is coming, I want to help. I owe Clark that much."
Bruce Wayne didn't respond. He pushed two buttons on the dashboard panel, and Kyla noticed they were back at the lake on the Wayne estate. The car drove straight into the water and down the hole she'd seen open up earlier. They sped down a tunnel, and before she could ask where they were going, the vehicle's headlights revealed a cavern.
When the car stopped, he opened the hatch, and they got out. He clamored up the stairs to a long room enclosed by glass. Data flashed across high tech computer screens. Tables full of mechanical parts lined the outer wall of the room, and Kyla noticed a tall, lanky man sitting at one of them.
"Master Bruce, you didn't tell me you were expecting company." The man spoke with a proper British accent as he eyed her with suspicion.
"Alfred, meet… what's your name?" He asked her.
"Kyla." She shook Alfred's hand. "I'm Superman's sister."
Alfred turned and gave Bruce a look that must have translated over years of knowing each other, because Bruce rolled his eyes.
"I know, Alfred."
Kyla didn't know what to say, and the silent conversation happening between the two men made her feel awkward like an outcast. Alfred turned back to her.
"Miss...Kyla, can I get you anything?"
"If you could get this guy to talk and open up, that would be nice," she chuckled.
"I'm afraid I'm still working on that myself, my dear. Master Bruce is a man of very few words. He's still a mystery to even me… and I raised him."
"Alfred, I think I heard someone knocking at the front door," Bruce muttered.
"I believe that's my cue to leave," Alfred groaned. "If you'll excuse me, Miss Kyla." He stood, glared at Wayne, and walked up a set of stairs at the end of the room.
She leaned against the table and crossed her arms, "So, are you planning to keep me down here in this dungeon, or are you going to let me in on your secret?"
Bruce sat down at a large computer screen and tapped a few strokes on the keyboard before a folder popped open. Inside were three files with a lightning bolt, an upside down V, and a C for their icons.
"This is why I brought you here… to show you this."