A/N: Hi guys! I thought I'd write this up before the holidays. This chapter slows down a bit to catch us up with what is going on with the invasion.

For those of you who guessed it, you were right! I got the idea from the video game: Batman Arkham Asylum. If you guys haven't played that or the newer one: Batman Arkham City, I definitely recommend them. They go in to great depth of the Batman universe.

I really appreciate the support, and thanks for reading!

The Home Away From Home

"Arkham? What's at Arkham?" Diana raised her eyebrow in confusion.

Regaining her composure and refocusing on the important task at hand, Barbra shook her head. "His little home away from home." Looking back at Alfred, she couldn't help but crack a small smile despite everything that had just occurred. "You'll love it there… there's way too much to clean."

Alfred rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't expect anything less from Master Bruce."

Quickly deciphering the meaning behind Barbra's joke, Diana glared at Bruce. "You have a cave on Arkham Island… and you didn't tell me because?"

Batman continued to stare straight ahead as he piloted the ship. "I've only used it a few times when things got a little chaotic on the island. There's not much there, but enough to be a secondary base when needed…"

"Don't feel so bad Di… he didn't tell me about that cave until Joker took over the island a while back." Barbra scratched her head. "I just hope the computer over there isn't too outdated. That thing hasn't been used in years."

Batman released his right hand from Diana's grasp and held up the hard drive so that Barbra could see it. "That's what this is for."

Diana took the hard drive from Batman and looked at it. "You uploaded all of the main computer's information onto this?"

Batman smirked. "That… and all the information within Darkseid's data base."

"How did you manage to do that?" Barbra dropped her jaw in surprise.

Batman chuckled. "It's me remember?"

"Right… I almost forgot who I was talking to." Barbra mockingly smacked herself on the forehead.

"But how did you get all that? Where did the information come from?" Diana switched her sights from the hard drive to Batman.

Batman glanced over to see a confused look on Diana's face. "Since you had already revealed our location when you connected onto the embassy's network with your com link, I accessed the league's mainframe and downloaded everything."

Diana looked back down at the hard drive. "But… your computers already have everything that the league's computers have."

"Yes… but since Darkseid integrated his network with the league's to take complete control over their defensive and weapons operating systems, I was able to gain access to his network and get everything from his data base." Batman guided the ship into a hidden passage way under Arkham Island.

Barbra tapped Diana on the shoulder to pass the hard drive to her. "Nice… but what about Brainiac? Doesn't he infect every network he touches?"

"Way ahead of you." Batman pressed a button as the ship began to resurface. "That's why it took forever to download, and forced me to blow up the main computer."

Barbra grinned as she nodded. "Ah… I get it. Get a clean copy of Darkseid's information while making it look like it was all for nothing by blowing up the computer."

"Exactly" Batman smirked.

Diana opened the canopy while watching Batman shutdown the boat. "But how can you be sure that it's really a clean copy?"

"That's what Oracle's for." Batman helped Barbra and Alfred out of the boat and onto the cave's Sionis Steel platform. He quickly turned back to the pitch black cave. "Scan"

A light sensor appeared out of nowhere as it scanned Batman's body. "WELCOME BATMAN… DEFENSIVE SYSTEMS DISABLED"

"Lights on" Batman carried Oracle to the only chair at the main computer in the center of the cave as both Alfred and Diana followed.

Diana saw Alfred shake his head in disappointment as he began cleaning up the cave. Saying that it's a mess was an understatement… completely covered in thick layers of dust, the cave looked as if it had been abandoned for years. It made her wonder if this is what the primary cave would look like if Bruce didn't have Alfred there to clean it. The workstations were suspended by Sionis Steel platforms bolted to the cave's ceiling. Diana looked down and roughly estimated that the actual bottom of the cave was about one, maybe two miles deep. Many giant plantlike roots had grown and wrapped themselves around the platforms and the main computer. The way the roots now rested, it seemed as if they grew out of nowhere in an attempt to crush the cave and destroy everything in it. Diana looked over to the eastern platform and saw that it was completely torn apart by the roots while another set relocated what was left of the western platform to about twenty feet above it. As she walked around the main platform, she saw the cave's small armory half stocked with old and outdated gadgets. "He definitely hasn't been here in a while." Diana noticed that it was a very small base, even for his standards. There was no room for any batmobiles, or batcycles for that matter. The only vehicle in the cave was a miniature batjet that was covered in grime, dirt, and dust… not to mention the dings, dents, bullet holes, and missing panels. She definitely had her doubts about its ability to fly after being neglected after all these years.

"I'm surprised that this computer's still alive and kicking." Oracle chuckled as she analyzed the hard drive's contents. "Yes sir… it's clean. No traces of Brainiac whatsoever."

Batman crossed his arms over his chest. "Pull up anything and everything on his ships and weaponry. I want to know everything."

"You got it." Oracle opened multiple applications on the giant screen and began to work.

Diana walked back to the main computer and leaned against the back of Oracle's chair, looking at the cracked computer screen. "What's with the plant decorations?" It was pretty obvious who was behind the so-called decorations, but she decided that it was an easy way to join in on the conversation.

"Poison Ivy's plants took over the island at one point." Batman said without taking his eyes off of the screen.

"I see…" Diana looked up at the roots once more before returning her attention to the screen. "We should try to find any others who might have managed to avoid capture."

"No, we can't risk revealing our location to anyone." Batman stopped and turned towards Diana. He knew that choosing to remain hidden while others were still being hunted down didn't sit well with her. It also didn't help that the guilt of revealing their initial location back in the batcave was creeping back into her mind. Pulling off his cowl and placing his hands on her hips, Bruce turned Diana to face him and waited until she looked into his eyes. "We will get them back. All of them. Just let me think this through Princess…"

Taking in a deep breath, Diana nodded before wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him towards her just enough to rest her forehead against his. "You have two hours."

Diana was sitting on a metal crate as Alfred placed a tray of sandwiches on a bigger crate in front of her. "I'm going to kill him… I mean it. I'm going to strangle him." Diana glared at Batman as he continued his work on the computer. There were times when he wouldn't even allow Barbra near the computer as he stared into the screen for hours on end, looking as if he was about to lose his mind. Diana thought she would go insane for Bruce by just seeing him in such an immensely strenuous state. "It's been four days Alfred. FOUR!"

Alfred sat down next to Diana and looked at Bruce with her. "Mistress Diana… I know Master Bruce is doing everything he can." Alfred placed his hand on her shoulder, waiting for her to look back at him before continuing. "I have never seen him work so hard before." Diana saw the seriousness on Alfred's face. She never seen Alfred this worried over Bruce before. Bruce hadn't eaten or talked much since he started working, he just stood there thinking while typing on the computer every once in a while. The only time he would talk in length was when he was telling Oracle to bring information together on the screen or help make sure a plan logically made sense. Alfred sighed before looking back at Diana with a smirk. "And between you and I… that is saying something."

Diana couldn't help but smile back as she nodded. "I know Alfred… I know…" Diana took one of the sandwiches on the tray. "It's just so frustrating sitting here while the whole world is in ruins and having our friends being held against their will." She took a bite out of the sandwich. "These are delicious Alfred, thank you."

Alfred stood up and straightened his suit. "You are very welcome Mistress Diana. I would have served something other than just these the past few days… but as you know, the selection up there is very limited." He pointed up at the ceiling of the cave. During the last few days, Batman sent Diana up to the island's surface and into the asylum's cafeteria for food and drinks. He gave her a specific route that would avoid any possible detection so that she could get what was needed and return as quickly as possible. Oddly enough, no one ever thought about breaking into and looting the asylum's cafeteria – even after the parademons blew half of the asylum off of the face of the Earth.

Diana laughed as she picked up a cup of water to drink. "It's perfectly alright Alfred. I'd gladly eat the sandwiches you make over anything they serve in the embassy's cafeteria."

Alfred bowed to her in kind before turning back to look at Batman and Oracle. "Now if only someone could convince Master Bruce to eat something, my efforts would not have gone for naught."

Diana smiled as she picked up the tray of sandwiches. "I'll take care of that. Thank you Alfred."

"No, Mistress Diana. Thank you. You truly are the best thing to ever happen to him." Alfred smiled back before picking up a broom.

Diana blushed slightly before walking off to Bruce and Barbra. She placed the tray in front of Barbra while taking a sandwich and holding it in front of Bruce's mouth. "Are you going to eat this or am I going to have to feed you again?" Diana smirked as she tilted her head, waiting for his response. She watched him continue to think and stare at the screen while typing on the keyboard. His face was worn and tired as the bags under his eyes made their own shadows over his cheeks. Diana would have believed that it was impossible for anyone to go without sleep for this long if it wasn't for Bruce. Thank the Gods for the creation of caffeine. Then again… if Bruce wasn't drinking gallons of coffee everyday, he would be well rested and refreshed more often. Seeing that she wasn't getting a response from him, she took her free hand and scratched his stubby unshaven beard. Diana hummed as she kept tracing Bruce's jaw line with her fingertips while waving the sandwich in front of his face. Finally giving in to Diana's somehow highly effective distractions, Bruce opened his mouth to let her stuff it in as he took a bite. After feeding him three sandwiches, Diana grinned with great satisfaction. "See? Eating something once in a while isn't so bad."

Bruce glared at her as Barbra laughed while eating her sandwich. "Batman actually eats? Who knew?"

Ignoring the both of them again, Bruce took Diana's cup of water and drank it before getting back to work. Diana kissed him on the cheek before walking to the other side of the computer console. She opened a small window on the giant screen to watch the local news. The news reporter was shown with Darkseid's main ship hovering above The Justice League embassy in the background. "…reports have come in estimating that the death toll around the world has reached two billion people and it continues to climb at an alarming rate. It isn't entirely clear what Darkseid is waiting for after taking down The Justice League. It's been speculated that he plans to force them to watch as he slowly destroys the Earth. It is clear however, that Darkseid is going to make Superman and the other founding members suffer tremendously before finishing them off with the rest of the world."

Diana's eyes widened as the camera zoomed in to see Superman, The Martian Manhunter, Hawkgirl, Green Lantern, and the Flash trapped in the transparent force field cell. Anger started boiling through her veins as she watched several Parademons continuously torture them. Diana quickly turned up the volume when the reporter continued her report on the current status of Batman and Wonder Woman. "There are also several reports on the whereabouts of Batman and Wonder Woman, as both are still missing from the special prison cell that holds the rest of the founding members. Sources claimed to have seen the both of them die during the initial invasion and capture of The Justice League, while others continue to state that they heard Darkseid order his forces to continue the hunt for Batman and Wonder Woman… even if they are still alive, the possibility of just the two of them stopping Darkseid's forces appear to be nonexistent." Diana folded her arms over her chest as her eyes narrowed. Once Bruce perfects his plan, Darkseid was going to pay for his crimes – with interest.

The reporter continued as she motioned to the many dead bodies that littered the area. "Darkseid's forces have completely decimated all of the world's combined military and special forces with ease. After initially capturing The Justice League within the first two days of the invasion, the world's entire military army was annihilated in a matter of minutes… Even all of the world's notorious super criminals banded together to attempt to stop Darksied's forces, only to be brutally slaughtered. It has been believed that those forces have gotten off easy while the founding members of The Justice League haven't been as fortunate. So far, it's been Superman who has received the majority of Darkseid's wrath. For the fourth consecutive day, Darkseid and his minions have been seen brutally beating down Superman without any restraint or hesitation. As you can see from the footage we've gathered, Superman continues to be completely defenseless as the beatings have gotten more brutal as each day passes by. It remains to be seen how much more pain Superman can take before meeting his end. We can only pray that The Justice League can somehow find a way to save the world one more time…"

Diana slammed her fists into the console as her patience ran out, leaving only pure frustration and anger controlling her thoughts. "Damn it Bruce! It's been four days! And we haven't done anything to stop him!" She stormed up to Bruce and spun him around. Diana forced him to look into her eyes, which were intensely burning with anger. "NOTHING!"

"Patience Princess…" Batman said in a calmer, softer kind of voice than he would normally use when confronting a very pissed off Amazon.

"Don't patience Princess me! NOT this time!" Diana forcefully poked him in the chest with one hand before motioning to the entrance of the cave with the other. "Millions of people are dying out there! I can't stay hiding in here anymore Bruce! I can't!"

Bruce grabbed and held Diana by the waist with his left hand while cupping her cheek with his right. Diana initially resisted in anger as she pushed back against him, but finally allowed Bruce to bring her close to him as they stood inches apart. He traced her lips with his thumb while caressing her cheek as he spoke. "It's taken me a lot longer than I wanted or expected… but yes… I have a plan Princess…"

A/N: Like I said, not much action, so of course, I had to throw in a little bit of comic relief while still keeping the dark mood.

I was debating whether or not to go into greater detail about what Darkside is doing, or how the other members of the league were being captured. The war with the Parademons and Earth's notorious villains seemed like a great side story to write, but I like writing about Batman more so I skipped it.

I personally don't really like it when a story drags on so I wanted to make sure I wasn't doing that to you guys. But if you guys want me to, I'll write what happened within those 4 days as a deleted scene or something later on. Just let me know.

Thanks again for reading. Any and all reviews are always welcomed and greatly appreciated!