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Author Apologies(s): PLEASE, read ANY AND ALL of the following BOLDED text! Wow. Well, first of all, it has been a long time. I am so very sorry for the ridiculously-late response/update. I was caught-up with real-life, for a while (Baseball, Track-And-Field, Graduation, College Finalizations, Etc.), and my FIRST thought was to keep-track-of, and respond to any and all of the outstanding message-conversations that I have on this here site—and update any and all of my existing FanFictions. However, just as I got back on this site, I realized something: I have been reviewing/revising/re-writing my FanFictions, BEFORE I upload/update them, but it was NEVER ANYWHERE CLOSE to how much I NEEDED To review/revise/re-write them! ...So, I STARTED reviewing, revising, and rewriting ANY AND ALL of my FanFictions, and just when I was about HALF-WAY through doing that (I Have OVER 200,00 WORDS Published/Posted On This Godforsaken Site! Do You Know How LOOOOOONG That Takes To Review/Revise/Rewrite?! VERY LONG!), and about to respond to any and all of my messages, when my life fell apart—literally.
Between psychotic breaks, episodic events, and metal crazes, (All Of Which Were Caused By My Life, That Just Happened To Turn Super-Sucky), I was, well, incapacitated.
You don't need an excuse. But, you do deserve one.
The good news (For EVERYONE) is the following. Writing my OWN ORIGINAL Books-Series (There Are FOUR, SEPARATE, UN-Related, Book-Series, And Hopefully, I Will Have A Literary Agent/Publishing-Deal, In A Year, OR Two! …On The SLIM Chances That Is DOES Actually Occur, Or Happen…), looking for agents, looking-into-querying, and FAN-FICTION have become my outlet! ...So, my depressing life will make for AWESOME FanFiction, with HAPPY undertones (But, My Stories/FanFictions Will STILL Have Character-Deaths [Well, SOME], Gore, Blood [NOT TOO Much, Though], Romance, And NO OOC-Ness, OR Mary-Sues, Mind-You!).
I have JUST finished-up reviewing/revising/rewriting my CURRENTLY-POSTED chapters of any and all Fan Fictions, and today is the day that I shall be updating ANY AND ALL of my FanFictions. And, also, today is also the day, that I will-be starting three NEW FanFictions, and they will be the LAST FanFictions that I will EVER start—unless, I decide to do a cross-over, between my DC-Comics-FanFiction, and my MARVEL-Comics-FanFiction (BOTH, The MARVEL-FanFiction, AND, The DC-Fan Fiction, Features A Teenage, Next-Gen-Hero-Team, So Having Them Team-Up In A Cross-Over Would Be Kind-Of Cool. …But, IF I Do That Cross-Over, Then That Definitely Would Be The LAST Fan Fiction That I EVER START!)! For a timeline of future updates you should know this: "I Will NOT Cancel ANY Of My FanFictions!" I WILL FINISH THEM ALL! …If you wish to have a better idea of how often updates will be coming, though, I have FOUR FanFictions that take precedent over my others, and as such, those four will probably be updated faster than others. You should all note, however, that I WILL be updating ANY AND ALL of my FanFictions! However, I am unsure, as to how long each update will take, so PLEASE HAVE PATIENCE! So, to keep-up with the updates, PLEASE, subscribe to me/my-story, favorite me/my-story, or message me and ask me to personally message you whenever I DO update, and I will HAPPILY do so!
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VII. Legendary Legacies
Dusan Al Ghul, better known as the White Ghost, had a serrated steel katana pressed harshly up against John Stewart's neck. Damian looked less than pleased by the fact that his uncle had a deadly weapon held against the neck of his latest ally. After Dusan had used the "Ley Lines" of the Earth to control and command his nephew's body—Damian's body—Damian and Dusan had not been on the best of terms.
Dusan had possessed Damian, in order to give his father—Ra's Al Ghul, the grandfather of Damian—the servant and sacrifice that Ra's needed for his terrorist-based antics, which was required to complete his plan of annihilating Gotham City. Gotham City was seen, by Ra's, as the biggest pool of corruption in the world. Ra's felt that—due to his long-lifespan, his intelligence, and his immense training and willpower—he had earned the right to deem what was "necessary," or "right," for the people of Earth, and he saw that "destroying corruption," was the best way to do what was "right."
The Lazarus Pits had given his family the added advantage of increased longevity and reparative recovery from almost any injury. The water from the Pits had a special healing component that allowed those completely submerged—in any one of the many Lazarus Pits around the world—to regain full fitness, an amazingly rebuilt body and physical form, and return with complete physical prowess.
The pits used their locations as the perfect power points—the points of intersection of the "Eternal Energy," that surrounded Planet Earth—to invigorate anyone that entered a Lazarus Pit with a new, rejuvenated, and powerful physical form. However, even though the pits had the energy and life-force needed to resurrect beings, it did not have the "spark" that it needed to rejuvenate the being's soul.
As such, the pits took this "spark," from the being—the being that was about to be resurrected or completely healed by the Lazarus Pit in question. However, there was a significant downside to this. The "spark" that the pits took from the person that it was about to heal—although it restored the being to physical perfection—drained a large amount of the being's mental purity; it drained their sanity. Ra's, having already deemed himself insane before he first used the pits in ancient Arabia, saw no bad after-effects of using the pits. Thus, Ra's was the first human to ever use a Lazarus Pit, and as such, lose a large amount of his sanity—although he gained a large amount of physical prowess and intelligence in return.
After centuries and centuries of traveling, learning, training, teaching, and tempering, Ra's regained a large portion of his sanity, but he still believed that the human race to impure to continue to exist in the way it did. Thus, Ra's looked into "correcting" the human race, and as such, he was met with an enemy that had matched him in every possible way. This new enemy prevented every major attack that Ra's had planned. This new enemy of Ra's matched his physical prowess, his genius-level intelligence, and even his will and determination. This new enemy of Ra's Al Ghul was none other than Bruce Wayne—the original Batman.
Ra's respect for his new foe outweighed his hatred for him, and he sought after Batman—whose identity he quickly deduced—to marry and procreate with his equally well-trained and intelligent daughter, Talia Al Ghul. Batman obviously refused, but he quickly found himself oddly attracted to Talia. Eventually, a one-night-stand led to the creation—in a test-tube—and birth of the son of Bruce Wayne and Talia Al Ghul, Damian Al Ghul—later renamed Damian Wayne. Bruce did not know of the existence of his son, until Damian was dropped off on Bruce's front steps many years later, after Damian had spent years upon years training and learning under his mother and grandfather.
That was so very long ago, though. Damian now had the respect of his grandfather, his uncle, his aunt—although she was dead—and of his brothers. Of course, Damian's aunt, Nyssa Al Ghul, was deceased, just as a number of his family members were deceased, due to their Hero Hunters' actions. Fortunately, though, every one of Damian's family members that had died in the Hero Hunting had taken his or her Hunter with them.
Due to the large amount of members of the League that had been eliminated, they were unable to use Lazarus Pits to bring them back, as there were too many souls to revive. This was a sad and tremendous loss for Damian, and he had taken it hard—especially after he had blamed himself for not being there when the Hero Hunting had happened.
Instead, Damian was with Rose. Though, the fact of the matter remained that, had he not been back-to-back with Rose, he would most-likely have died in the Hero Hunting. The Lazarus Pits could not fix those losses that his family had endured, as there were too many people to restore, and soon the time limits—the time before the body could not be restored—expired on all of those that had perished in the Hero Hunting.
Still, though a large number of the problems within Damian's family had been alleviated and fixed, or otherwise corrected, by the Lazarus Pits. After Dusan's attempt to possess Damian's body, there was some serious tension between the two. However, after Damian defeated his uncle in his preliminary training—upon Damian's return to the League of Assassins, which was the beginning of his twelve-year-long training—Dusan's respect for his nephew skyrocketed. Although he was silent regarding his sentiments towards Damian, the demon child knew that his uncle had accepted him as his grandfather had accepted him—as the next heir to the leadership of the League of Assassins.
That was a position that Dusan wanted very much, and he was always willing to go very far—even so far, as to die—for the title, and for his father's respect. Of course, insanity was hereditary in this family, but his mother's side was not the only side of his family that had the insanity gene. Bruce had been well to pass on his paranoia and mistrust to all of his sons. Thus, Jason Todd's slightly psychotic outlook on the world, after having been brought back with a Lazarus Pit, was not entirely blamed on the pit's side-effects.
Damian stood in the hideout's central room, watching his uncle, Dusan Al Ghul, with a look that screamed murder. Dusan still had his blade on John's neck, and he did not look like he was testing John. He looked like he was going to kill him. However, the Green Lantern simply returned Dusan's glare, and neither man seemed to be willing to give the other any satisfaction by backing down.
John had just finished explaining the entire situation to Ra's, and his family of assassins. Damian was there to ensure that no one reacted in any rash manner, and Dusan was doing just that in his opinion. Dusan questioned John's truthfulness, and after Damian personally vouched for him, Dusan questioned how they could be of assistance—and also why they should even assist the Green Lantern that had brought this threat to their doorstep. John had, naturally, retorted with a wisecracking comeback, and then Dusan's blade had found its way to John's neck—and it had not moved an inch since then.
Damian shot Dusan a cold look, and Dusan responded with an equally cold look, although Dusan's look was aimed at the black man dressed in green. Damian looked like he was about to kill his uncle…again.
"Dusan, enough." the man commanded his uncle. Dusan looked over at Damian, and he nodded loyally, as he sheathed his katana in its case.
John gave Damian a quick look, and he nodded in thanks. Damian returned the favor.
Ra's was the next to move. He was sitting in his ornate chair that leaned up against the northern wall of the room. Ra's rose from his chair, and he approached the Lantern.
Ra's was a few feet from the Lantern before he stopped moving towards him, and he finally spoke.
"How can we assist you in repelling this enemy?" he asked the Lantern.
John nodded and he responded, "The shadow slayers do not have a weakness towards wood. However, there is a way that your weapons can harm them." he explained, and Ra's raised an eyebrow.
"How so?" he asked, and John was quick to respond.
John pointed his ring to an empty area of the room, and an emerald beam of energy shot out from his ring, quickly solidifying into a see-through green construct; the construct was a transparent field of emerald energy.
"It is possible—very possible—to harm them with ordinary blades and weapons. However, harming the slayers, while using ordinary weapons would require great strength and energy to be able to break through the field of emerald energy that surrounds the shadow slayers—an amount of strength and energy that is well out of the reach of the human race. But there is another way. Due to the fact that the shadow slayers use emerald energy—although it is a warped and twisted version of that energy—the only thing that will undoubtedly harm them is emerald energy itself. Any other kind of colored energy from the Emotion Spectrum—energies such as violet energy, scarlet energy, etc.—would also inflict damage upon the shadow slayers. But emerald energy is all that we have available in the current circumstances." John explained.
John gestured to the field of emerald energy that he had just created. Ra's nodded in understanding. John continued. "Passing your weapons through this field of emerald energy will temporarily surround your weapons with a field of emerald energy, allowing you to inflict damage upon the shadow slayers." the Green Lantern finished, and Ra's nodded once again.
He turned around, and he gave Dusan a solid, subtle, nod. The White Ghost returned the nod, turning around and walking away, his bleach white hair whipping around as he did so. Dusan returned moments later, a group of assassins following behind him closely, all of them carrying many weapons—swords, bows-and-arrows, axes, rods, scimitars, crossbows, nunchucks, and a plethora of others.
Dusan led the assassins to the field of emerald energy that John had created earlier, and he proceeded to throw the weapons through the field. Once the weapons passed through the field, they had and emerald glow surrounding them, indicating that they were now covered in emerald energy. John nodded, and he turned his attention back to Damian.
At the moment that Damian was about to speak, a small boy appeared at his side. The boy had deep, dark, jet-black hair that was organized in a chaotic manner, and his ice-cold blue-grey eyes scanned the room in an expert manner—a manner that said that he was trained, very well trained. He looked to be about the age of thirteen years, no older—but perhaps a tad younger—and he had an obvious, yet subtle, muscular build. The boy stood in a loyal stance beside Damian, apparently awaiting orders. John couldn't help but notice the similarities between Damian and his younger counterpart—not in looks, but in attitude. Damian had obviously had a hand in the boy's training.
"Able, arm yourself. There is an enemy approaching, and we need all able-bodied assassins at-the-ready." Damian ordered, and the boy nodded obediently, as he went off to the other side of the room to acquire some weapons that were wrapped in emerald energy.
As the boy departed, John saw a display of his speed, and his agility, and he noticed how incredible they were. They were perhaps even better than Damian's own prowess was at his age. Still though, John had not seen the boy fight, and that was the true test of skill in the League. Damian turned around and faced his uncle, who was still preparing the weapons, and he addressed him.
"Dusan, explain the situation to him." Damian ordered his uncle, and Dusan nodded in return. Dusan turned to address the young boy that had approached him, and he began to speak to him, all the while the boy nodded in understanding and agreement.
Damian then turned back to John—and his mother, that had now made her way to the Lantern's side.
"Who's the kid?" John asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Aaron Able. Taught and trained since birth. He can speak, read, and write, fluently in seven different languages. He knows more about nuclear fission, than a physicist does. He can outlast a physically fit Olympian in any test of wills. He was taught to run before he could walk. He was taught to write before he could read. He was taught to kill before he could wound. We call him archetype—for obvious reasons. He lives up to his name." Damian explained, smirking with an unexpected hint of pride as he did so.
John nodded. "His parents?" he questioned, and Talia responded to this one.
"They were both members of the League, and they were both killed in the Hero Hunting. The boy is our responsibility now." Talia responded, and John nodded once again.
John now turned his head back to Damian. "Your protégé?" the Lantern inquired, and Damian shrugged.
"The League doesn't condone the use of the term 'protégé,' but yes, I have spent the most time with him in his lessons. He is a quick learner—a very quick leaner—and he always corrects his mistakes." Damian said with, again with a hint of pride. John nodded once again.
Talia spoke next, and she addressed the Lantern. "Well, John, how is that alien wife of yours?" she questioned with a sly smile.
John looked slightly taken aback, but he quickly shook it off. He briefly wondered how Talia knew so much about him, but once again, he shook it off. "Katma is doing well." John replied.
Talia nodded, and she prodded even further. "She is still the Green Lantern for Sector 1417, I presume?" she asked inquisitively, and while John still wanted to know how she knew this information, he shook it off and answered her quickly.
"No. Katma has now gladly retired from that position. Her sector is in the small percentage of sectors that has actually retained a Green Lantern to protect it. The unfortunate fact remains, though, that not many sectors even have Green Lanterns anymore. After the Shadow Slayer Conflicts, our numbers were seriously reduced. There is, however, a new Green Lantern for that specific Sector. In fact the new Green Lantern of Sector 1417 is very closely related to Katma." John said, pride dripping from his voice as he spoke of his Krougarian wife.
Talia raised an all-knowing eyebrow. "Ah, so your daughter is now the Lantern for Sector 1417, I presume?" she asked, and John's mouth nearly fell open—but he stopped himself.
He simply nodded dumbly at the woman that knew everything about him. Talia smirked.
After a few moments, John returned his attention to his new partner. "So, how are things back in Gotham?" John asked, and Damian looked down at his shoes, and then briefly at the wooden floor, before returning his gaze to the Green Lantern before him.
"I would not know. I have not been to Gotham in quite some time." Damian said, feeling slightly downcast at the truth of his own words.
John nodded. "So, that leaves Terry and Dick over there, right? How'd they decide who gets the suit?" John questioned with a slight chuckle, and Talia now looked very interested in the conversation.
"My father left the cowl to Grayson. I'm sure that McGinnis is using it as well though. I couldn't imagine it otherwise." he replied to John's question, and the Lantern nodded in response, not wanting to go further into a topic that Damian clearly did not want to talk about.
Damian Wayne was one of the youngest of his father's sons, and he was the only one related to him by blood; that was what was believed, until Terry and Bruce discovered the truth about their relationship. Terry was genetically engineered, using Bruce's DNA and blood—as part of the "Batman Beyond Project," which was designed to make Bruce Wayne's genes live on, so Batman could, in effect, live on.
Terry had found out that he was, genetically, Bruce's biological son, only years after he had saved Bruce from a gang of 'Jokerz,' and after Terry had become the new Batman. The information was very unnerving, for both Terry and Bruce. As a result, Terry gave up the cowl. Both men blamed themselves for never knowing of their true connection, but the truth was that it was the doing of the agency called Cadmus.
Cadmus had injected Terry's father with Bruce's DNA and genetic information, in order to allow his mother to become impregnated with a fetus that had the same physical, mental, and emotional prowess and potential as Bruce Wayne himself. Cadmus then hired an assassin to kill Terry's birthparents, thus sending him into a life of desperate retribution and crime fighting. The assassin never went through with it though. Because of her ties to the League of Assassins, and because of her own moral codes, she never committed the act. Regardless of this fact though, Terry's father had still been killed. Terry had still met Bruce. Bruce had still trained Terry. Moreover, Terry had still become Batman—the fifth man to obtain that title. Cadmus was always trying to "better the world," but they always did more harm than good. Damian was thankful that the agency was shut down after so many "mishaps" had occurred.
Terry was younger than Damian, but not by much. In fact, their age was very close. Terry was always closer to Jason as a brother, though—especially after Terry's younger biological brother, Matt, had died. The fact that Terry and Jason had very similar backgrounds and experiences most-likely led to that inescapable fact. Damian and Terry were also very close, albeit constantly butting heads, but they were still very close, nonetheless.
In fact, when Damian was ten years old—and, at the time, acting as the current Robin—he had even saved the preteen Terry from being beaten up in street fight in his neighborhood. Damian learned very quickly, though, that Terry was the one that had started the fight. Although Terry was vastly outnumbered, he had managed to inflict serious injuries upon his opponents, hence the reason that he was running from them. Damian learned this information very quickly and he gave Terry a chase that the young boy would not soon forget, but somehow, Terry managed to lose Damian.
Terry lost the assassin that had been trained and taught, since birth, the assassin that was physically and mentally superior to men three times his age. The fact, that Terry managed to lose Damian, certainly impressed the young Robin—but it also angered him. Later, when Damian learned who Terry was, it only solidified their rivalry. Their rivalry, however, was matched only by their respect for each other.
Bruce Wayne had adopted four sons. He had been biologically related to one—to Terry. Bruce had also raised Damian, as well. He had taught, trained, and tempered all of his sons. He had also trained, taught, and tempered four girls, and he had considered these girls his own as well. He had never adopted any of the girls that he had taught, trained, tempered, and raised. He didn't need to. With, or without, legal guardianship—or blood relationships—these girls saw him as a father, regardless.
Bruce had taught, trained, and tempered a fifth girl, as well. She never considered him a father, although she was the only one of the girls, that he had trained, that was related to him—by blood. Helena Bertinelli was the first person to use the hero-alias known as "Huntress," but Bruce's biological daughter, Helena Wayne, had been the second holder of that name. Helena Wayne was the youngest of the girls that Bruce had taught, and she had been the very last person to assume the role of "Robin," before Dick Grayson, Bruce's oldest son, assumed the role of Batman after Bruce's death.
Helena Wayne was named after Helena Bertinelli, and she was Damian's only biological sister—although she was only his half-sister. Her existence had been kept, as a secret, from her father for years—much like Damian's own existence, which was kept from Bruce for ten years.
Damian was not even allowed to grieve properly for Helena Wayne, as her body was never recovered. The two other sisters that Damian and lost, though—Helena Bertinelli and Barbara Gordon—were properly put to rest where they belonged, as they were both finally allowed to rest after a long lifetime of fighting for a just cause.
Bruce Wayne did not raise children. He lowered them. He demeaned them. He took them off of the streets, adopted them, and saved them. Then he killed them. He kept their bodies and minds solidly strong, but he destroyed their souls. It was not an option; it was the only option. They were mortals, and they wanted revenge for what the world had done to them. Bruce Wayne gave them what they needed. He gave them retribution. He gave them the instrument that they would use to enact this retribution. He gave them their minds, their skills, and their symbols. And they loved him for that.
Terry McGinnis and Dick Grayson were the last two brothers that Damian had left, and he hadn't seen them in a very long time. Damian sighed, as he reentered the present, looking back up at John and his mother.
John opened his mouth to talk, but he was cut off by the green flash on both of the Green Lantern power rings in the room. The ring on Damian's finger flashed perfectly in-synch with John's ring, and the two looked up at one another. It was time. The assassins, Dusan, Talia, and Aaron Able, were all armed with an extensive amount of weapons and blades—all wrapped in emerald energy. Aaron was soon at his mentor's side, and Damian looked down at his protégé, as he gave an unrecognizable signal. Aaron Able nodded in return.
John's Green Lantern suit surrounded itself with a glowing field of emerald energy, and he nodded for Damian to do the same. Damian nodded in return, and he sighed deeply and extended his arms to his sides, as he let the power of the ring wash over him. Soon, his own body was surrounded by a field of emerald energy, and he let out a deep breath. It took more energy, stamina, and willpower, than he had imagined it would to accomplish the supposedly-simple task. John smirked at Damian.
"Told you so, kid. Don't be so cocky. The strain is pretty big." he warned his comrade, and Damian nodded in understanding. He now fully believed John.
The green glow around Damian's body was noticeably weaker than the glow around John's body, but that was to be expected.
The two Green Lanterns—an official Green Lantern, and a renegade Green Lantern—slowly lifted a few feet from the ground, and they floated out to the balcony where John had made his entrance to the hideout only minutes ago.
The two then watched the sky, as shadow slayers after shadow slayers appeared before them, until the entire squad was there in front of them—twenty in total. They had a green glow around them as well, but their glow was noticeably darker than the glow around John or Damian. Their uniforms were also much darker, although, other than that, it looked very similar to John's Green Lantern Uniform—albeit with a different symbol on the front. The assassins appeared on the balcony—all of them.
Archers took up their positions as they drew their arrows back, and they each took aim at the emerald shadow slayer that he or she had chosen to target. The shadow slayers seemed unimpressed by the actions of the assassins, and they focused almost all of their attentions on the two Green Lanterns before them.
Three of the slayers raised their rings at the two Lanterns, and they showered the area, where John and Damian were floating, with deadly dark green blasts. The two took to the air, and moments after their bodies left the balcony, the fatal green blasts connected with the balcony, as it was promptly destroyed in flash of dark green and a cloud of smoke.
Now, all of the slayers took aim at their two approaching enemies, and this left them unaware of the archers below them. Thus, they were open to their attacks. Just before the slayers bombarded John and Damian with another shower of dark green energy, arrows—sharpened, accurate, and deadly, arrows, all wrapped in emerald energy—all left their bow, as they were propelled towards their intended targets.
The slayers immediately dispersed in an expert manner, but some were hit by the arrows, nonetheless. The slayers that were hit promptly fell to the ground, unconscious or otherwise dead. Two shadow slayers were impaled by two arrows, each in their upper chest area, but their new injuries only served to anger them further. These two slayers charged towards the large, and long, ledge where the archers were located, and they proceeded to bombard the area with dark green energy blasts. Many of the archers were burned, or otherwise catapulted from the ledge by the sheer force of the blasts.
As the two slayers landed on the ledge, however, assassins—with expert skill, and glowing green weapons—stepped out of the shadows that concealed them, and they attacked the slayers. The two slayers proceeded to instantly construct a dark green energy-shield, which the assassins' blades easily cut through—due to the emerald energy fields around their weapons.
One of the injured slayers quickly fell to the floor, bleeding, but the other swiftly dodged out of the way of the incoming blades, and he retaliated with a large fist—as large as a tall man—as the large dark green fist came flying at the assassins. Many of the skilled combatants dodged the fist cleanly, but it made contact with a few of the assassins, effectively crushing bones, pulverizing flesh, and knocking the assassins back. Dusan, Talia, and Able now sprung into action, as more of the shadow slayers veered down to deal with the assassins on the ledge. This left only half of the original amount of slayers for John and Damian to deal with in the sky.
The two Green Lanterns charged at their ten remaining enemies, as their altitude climbed, and they both raised their rings instinctively.
The ten shadow slayers sprayed the two approaching Green Lanterns with a flurry of dark green blasts, but John raced ahead of Damian, and he caught the blasts with a newly-formed solid green shield. Taking advantage of the slayers' momentary preoccupation with John and his construct shield, Damian launched himself over John's head, and he materialized two sharp, serrated, swords out of thin air. Damian grabbed the two swords, and he then proceeded to charge at his slightly confused and discombobulated enemies, slicing and slashing them with expert timing and efficiency as he did so. He caught flesh—and whatever flesh he caught, he sliced, without hesitation. John dropped his shield, as the slayers were now focused on Damian and his swords, and John took the moment to briefly catch his breath, and smirk.
"Once a ninja, always a ninja." John said, directing his comment at Damian, whose first two constructs as a Green Lantern were two swords.
"Damn straight." Damian responded, all-the-while fighting and dodging as best he could.
Damian was now circled by slayers, and John quickly entered the mix, himself. Two slayers were about to lunge at a distracted Damian to attack his exposed back, but John was there in a second, blocking the slayers' energy blasts with a solid green steel wall. The wall took the blast, and John dissolved his steel wall construct, as he created a large green whip and latched it around the waists of the two shadow slayers nearest him, pulling them within arms' reach.
As soon as the two slayers were within arms' reach, John swung his left hand—and he used a great deal of his willpower in the punch—as his fist connected with both of the men before him, in order, effectively crushing their jawbones and sending them flying to the cold, cruel, tundra below. John wasn't sure if he had killed them or knocked them unconscious, as he was not sure how much force he had used. John and Damian were back-to-back again, and the two continued to alternate between shield, sword, offense, and defense, as they continued to move in a circle and draw their enemies' fire towards themselves.
Back on the ledge, Dusan and his sister were back-to-back. Talia hurled three knives in the direction of the three nearest slayers, and two dodged—although the knives still struck them, albeit not in a fatal area—while one slayer was killed by her brutal blade. Dusan drew his second katana, and he pressed his back to his sister as the two continued to move in intricate patterns and circle their bodies, as their enemies lunged at them.
Aaron Able saw an opening, and he took it. The boy jumped off the second tier of the ledge, and he landed on a slayer's back, effectively cutting the man's throat as he did so. Aaron then toppled the now-dead man to the ground, and he hid behind the dead man's body until he hit the ground, effectively using the man's body as concealment from his enemies. The moment that the dead slayer's body hit the ground, however, Able flipped the body over, and he launched himself at the two slayers that were waiting there. He had efficiently used the dead man's body to hide his own small body from the view of his enemies until he sprung at them.
Now, the child with two glowing green knives lunged at the two men, giving them no time to react, as he stabbed one in the jugular. As he was traveling quickly forward, Aaron wrapped his legs around the second slayer's neck, bringing the slayer down with him. The moment that the boy and the slayer hit the ground, Able sprung himself up—as he was sure to land on his left hand, the hand that was without a blade. Aaron chaotically catapulted himself through the air above the slayer, flipping flawlessly as he did so. As he was flipping through the air, and upside down, Able threw his one remaining knife away from his body at an odd angle, and the knife hit the slayer, that he had just taken to the ground, square between the eyes, instantly ending him.
Able landed on his forearms, and he rolled forwards, quickly getting to his feet. He stood up, and he quickly surveyed his surroundings. The assassins now had the obvious advantage, as very few of the shadow slayers remained. Able spotted a lone katana on the ground, and he picked up the glowing green blade, as he launched himself back into the fight.
John and Damian made quick work of their enemies, but Damian failed to notice that a slayer—one that Damian had injured moments before—was charging towards John's back with a dark green razor construct in his hand. Damian turned around and noticed the man, mere moments too late. The slayer sliced at John, and he caught his flesh from the back of John's lower left kidney-area. The slayer dug his dark green construct blade into the Green Lantern's back, twisting and slicing as he did so. The dark-skinned man's noble Green Lantern Uniform was now colored crimson, with his own blood, in the area where the slayer's razor penetrated through his uniform and through his skin. The wound was deep on his lower left stomach, but it did not bleed much. John was in severe pain, but he managed to turn around and kick the slayer that had injured him, with all of his remaining willpower and strength, and it was a kick that would have rivaled a Kryptonian in pure power. The slayer's neck cracked in a sickening way, as he fell to the ground, lifeless.
Damian was at John's side in a moment, and he wrapped his arms around his friend, as he surveyed their aerial battlefield. John was breathing very heavily, and his strength was quickly fading. His injury was bleeding, but it was not bleeding much. Damian supported John, as the two flew into the hideout's interior.
Damian escorted John carefully back to the interior of the hideout. All of the shadow slayers that the assassins had to deal with had been dealt with. Damian landed, and he saw that many of the assassins—assassins that he had thought of as family and friends—were now dead or severely wounded or injured. However, he also took note that all of the shadow slayers were now dead or knocked unconscious as well.
Damian laid John down on the smooth wooden floor, and he called out to his grandfather, that, having not been involved in the fight, came almost immediately.
"Get some Lazarus Pit Water! His injuries are severe, but it will take some time for them to fatally affect him. We can heal him in the mean time wit—" Damian started, but was cut off, as John grabbed his hand and spoke.
"No." John said firmly.
Damian looked at the man with anger; it was clear that Damian wanted to slap him, but due to John's stomach wound, Damian did not. "We are going to heal you. You are not going to die, simply because of some foolish pride!" Damian shot back, and John grabbed his hand even tighter.
"Green Lanterns aren't supposed to live forever, kid. That's why we have the 'Selection Process.'" John replied softly, and just as he did so, his ring began to blink and flash as it sensed his growing weakness.
John smirked, and he held his ring to his mouth as he spoke into it, sending his last transmission to planet Oa. "This is John Stewart, Protector of Sector 2814. I am mortally wounded. I am beginning the selection process." he said with an air of finality and formality. John rose from the ground—albeit slowly and painfully, but he rose nonetheless—and he turned to Damian.
"Take that ring that you have there, back to Wayne Manor. It'll be safe there. I don't know why, but I've got a good feeling about this guy." John said, smiling as his ring created a holographic map of planet Earth and highlighted a city on the southeastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea.
John looked at the location with shock in his eyes. The hologram highlighted a single city: Cairo, Egypt. That's where he had last left Chaos and Control. He was, at least, thankful that he would be able to say goodbye to them—to the two children that he had promised Wally that he would watch after, to his niece and nephew.
John looked at Damian, and he nodded. "Take care, kid. Deny it all you want, but you are your father." John said with a smirk, as he lifted into the air and took off—using all of his remaining strength to do so—and he flew as fast as he could towards Cairo.
No one noticed, but an emerald shadow slayer took off after John. It was the only shadow slayer that had not been involved in the fight—the leader of the other shadow slayers—and it was now silently and stealthily following on the weakened Green Lantern's tail.
Damian looked after his injured, mortally wounded, friend as he departed the hideout, flying away in the cold Russian air, all-the-while the shadow slayer followed him and stayed out of sight. Damian sighed very deeply as he removed his ring from his finger, and the green glow around his body immediately dissolved and faded into nothingness.
Damian immediately had to take a deep breath, and he had to force himself to stand straight up. The strain that the ring had put on his body was very great, and that was only half of the strain that the average Green Lantern had to face—every time he or she put the ring on. Damian looked at the ring in astonishment. He had not expected the strain to be so great. John was right. He had a new respect for his wounded and proud comrade. He tossed the ring in the air and he quickly caught it and pocketed it. He turned to his grandfather, and he addressed him in a sharp, formal tone.
"I will need a plane back to Gotham." Damian stated, and his grandfather nodded.
"Of course it will take some time to arrange—and you may have to wait for a while—but I will arrange it." Ra's responded to his grandson, and Damian nodded. Damian then noticed the sad, sullen, expression on his protégé's face, and Damian smirked as he addressed his trainee, Aaron Able.
"Hey Able, how do you feel about taking a trip to America?" he asked, and the boy lit up at the remark. Aaron Able did not smile often.
"Sounds agreeable." he responded to his mentor, smiling slightly as he did so.
Rex looked into her pink eyes, and he couldn't look away.
"Talk." she commanded him. He still did not speak.
"I could kill you so quickly that you wouldn't even know that it was my intent to do so. I would speak, if I were you." she threatened, and, to this, he finally responded.
"The fact that you just revealed that piece of information also revealed your intent, which now makes your statement about me not knowing your intent very untrue." Rex replied, apparently finally out of his stupor.
Control narrowed her eyes, and Rex copied the action, returning her deathly fatal stare.
"So you can speak. And here I was, thinking that I was about to snap a mute kid's neck. Well, at least I'll know I killed a completely normal teenager—aside from the debilitating stupidity—when I look back on this moment." Control responded, seeming to mean every word she had just uttered. Rex still seemed unfazed. "Now talk." she commanded once again.
Rex smirked. "I just did." he obeyed her command.
All this time, Chaos watched his sister interrogate the boy that had just, undoubtedly, saved her life, and Chaos watched with an odd attraction to their conversation. He couldn't look away. He was watching his sister prepare to kill the boy that had just saved her life, and he just couldn't look away. He needed more entertainment in his life.
And girls. He needed more girls as well, but that was more difficult than it sounded. He had no money, and social skills only took a guy so far. His stomach grumbled, and it was so loud that the two deadlocked teens turned their heads to take notice of the teenage boy with the blue bandana around his mouth and a target painted on his bare chest. They then returned their attention to each other and their fatal stares became immeasurably more fatal. Chaos wondered where he might be able to get a good burger, and just as he did so, Control spoke.
"Why are you following us?" she questioned seriously.
Rex now looked genuinely confused. "I am not following you." he replied, and she scanned his face for any signs of dishonesty. She found none.
"Why were you here, then?" she asked.
"I heard the explosion, and I came to help." he responded honestly.
She raised an eyebrow. "So you just run towards explosions and gunfire? Do you have a death wish?" she asked him, somewhat jokingly.
Rex looked away from her deep pink eyes, as he stared at his shoes. Her eyes widened. She hit a soft spot. Maybe he did have a death wish. She instantly regretted her question.
"I'm…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—" she started to apologize, after a long pause in their banter, but he cut her off.
"You don't need to apologize. You asked a valid question. I am sorry for staying in the shadows and giving the impression that I was following you," Rex said, now turning his view towards Chaos as he said his three last words, "both of you." Rex finished, and Chaos nodded.
"Nah, don't worry about it, dude. If you didn't finish that guy off, Con would've died for sure." Chaos responded, taking off his bandana and smirking at his sister, who was shooting him a stare that would have killed anyone else. She couldn't believe that her brother had just suggested that she needed anybody's help. She most certainly did not need his help.
"I would've finished him just fine, thank you." Control responded to her brother's quip.
"Yeah, that was impressive." Rex commented on the twins' abilities.
Chaos smirked, and Control turned around and searched his face for any sign of cynicism or dishonesty once again, and once again, she found none.
"Thanks." the twins said in unison. Control carefully removed her bandana as her brother had just done, and she smiled at the boy for the first time since she had put her hands around his throat. Rex blushed slightly at her smile. She noticed the red creeping into his cheeks, but she did not think it was a blush. She looked down and she noticed that she was still holding him in a chokehold, and she assumed that he was losing oxygen. She quickly released her hold and addressed him frantically.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I hurt you?" she asked, in a somewhat-concerned voice.
Rex wanted to blush even further, but somehow, he managed to hold it back, and he simply shook his head in response. "What? No, no, I'm fine." he replied, smiling. At this moment, he remembered that he had his hood on, and he removed it, thinking it was rude, or poor etiquette. Then again, this girl had just tried to kill him.
Control got a good look at the boy's face for the first time since she almost killed him. His chaotic dark brown hair rested on top of his head in a fashion that was similar to her brother's hair, but she shrugged off that surprising similarity, during her basic assessment of the boy. She concluded her assessment, and she made a few assumptions about him immediately.
He was between the ages of sixteen and eighteen years of age. That sweatshirt was not his; he stole it. He looked like he did not have a permanent home. He lived on the streets, but it looked like that was a new arrangement for him. She figured this out quite quickly, because he was far more physically fit than the average person on the street. She made one final conclusion: he was attractive. She made sure not to let him know that she had made any of these thoughts however.
She looked him dead in the eye. "You steal stuff a lot?" she asked, gesturing to the sweatshirt.
He shook his head. "Only what I need." he replied to her remark.
"You just happened to need a green sweatshirt?" she questioned in return.
He shrugged. "It's cold at night." he replied seriously.
She smirked. "Yes. It's also cold in jail." she retorted.
He looked seriously at her, and then he smirked, himself. "Are you going to turn me in?" he inquired, and she chuckled.
"I don't think I will…" she trailed off, seeming to appear deep in thought.
"Well then, jail can be as cold as it wants. I have my sweatshirt and this nice sandy floor to sleep on tonight." he stated, and she narrowed her eyes at him.
"So, 'Con,' huh? What's that short for?" he asked the girl, using the name that her brother had referred to her by moments ago.
She looked at him seriously before deciding to answer him. "It's short for 'Control.' I'm Control, and that's my brother, Chaos." she responded solemnly, pointing at her brother as she did so.
Rex raised an eyebrow. "Are those you real names?" he questioned, and the girl immediately became cold.
"It is none of your concern what our 'real' names are. …But no, they are not our birth names." she replied to the boy in a cold, calculating, manner. She obviously did not like to give away any unnecessary information.
Rex nodded at her response. He was somewhat taken aback by her sudden brashness, but he shook it off and he opened his mouth to respond. Before he could utter a sound however, a flying black man with a glowing green aura crash-landed mere feet from the three teenagers.
Chaos and Control rushed over to him instantly, as they had almost immediately recognized him as the caring and kind man that had guided, protected, and raised them for the past twelve years—John Stewart. The twins were quickly by his side, as two streaks of red and blue zoomed over to him.
Rex was still stunned over the man's landing and he was currently shell-shocked and unable to move.
The twins immediately noticed the large amount of dried blood around John's stomach wound. The bleeding had practically stopped, but the real concern was that his stomach acid would eat away his necessary and vital organs, thus killing him. He had been suffering from this injury for some time before he had crash-landed, and there was no way of knowing how much time he had left.
Chaos and Control both put their hands over their injured uncle's body, and they used their abilities to accurately measure his metabolisms. He did not have much left. He did not have enough left for Chaos to be able to heal him. Control also presumed that he did not enough mental focus left for her to be able to heal him. Because of these unfortunate facts, instead of healing him, their attempts to restore him to full health would only speed-up his death.
The twins, each, grabbed one of John's hands and they both began to shed tears. The both knew that he was dying—and there was nothing that they could do to stop it.
John weakly smiled up at the children, and he spoke. "Don't cry. It'll be okay. I know you two can take care of yourselves. I'll be fine. I promise. I've been waiting to go see your dad for a while, anyways." he assured them, and they both nodded—albeit weakly.
"Oh, and here, Con. I got this for you, just like you asked." John stated, handing Control her mother's necklace, which had a single pendant on it—a pink gemstone. "I know that you think it'll help you control your telekinesis, but trust me, kido, because all the control, all the power, all the strength that you need, is inside you." the Lantern said, and Control nodded and smiled weakly at him, taking the necklace and putting it on.
John turned to Chaos. "I know that you can handle yourself. But please, don't do anything too stupid. You've got your father's knack for spontaneity. The thing is, though, that, sometimes, the spontaneous ones save the day. Be the savior, not the martyr, okay?" he pleaded, and Chaos smirked and chuckled lightly, wiping a tear from his eye. John then looked beyond the two twins, and he looked directly at Rex. He motioned for him to come to his side.
Rex was still shell-shocked, and he was now utterly confused. He did not know what to do.
"Come here." John said to him in his weak, soft, voice.
Rex, slowly but surely, shook off his stupor, and he gradually approached the man. Rex kneeled down beside John, and John released the twins' hands, as he removed his power ring. The green glow around his body faded, and his Green Lantern uniform lost its field of emerald energy, although it still looked noble and proud. John held the ring out to Rex. Rex went wide-eyed.
"Your name?" John questioned the confused and shocked boy before him.
"…R-Remy Oliver Mathis." Rex responded in a very choppy and unsure tone.
John nodded. "Remy Oliver Mathis. The ring. It. Chose. You." John spat out between deep breaths, as Rex went even more wide-eyed. The boy became speechless. John forced the ring into Rex's hand. "I know that it did not choose wrong." he finished, and Rex looked on in awe at the small, immensely powerful, object in his hands.
John looked back at the twins, and he grabbed their hands, as he addressed them for the final time. "Help him. You two are heroes, and now, so is he. Heroes need to stick together. That bond is the one thing that we have left to fight for. Fight for it. And win." he commanded them, and they both nodded sadly at their dying uncle, tears cascading down their cheeks. John was silent, and he spoke no more, as his hands gently released the twins' hand.
The twins then cried very silently as they looked away from their deceased uncle's body. Soon, though, they dried their eyes, and they turned their attentions to the dumbfounded boy with the ring in his hands.
The twins stood from the ground, and they both looked at him intently.
Rex raised his head to meet their stares.
"Put it on." Chaos said, no expression on his emotionally drained face.
Rex looked down at the ring, and then back up at the two twins. "…The ring…it must have…must have made…a…a…mistake…I'm not—" Rex started his choppy statement, but Control cut him off.
"The ring does not make mistakes. Put it on." she commanded him, and there was a hint of anger in her voice.
Rex looked right into her deep pink eyes, and he nodded hesitantly. He was still unsure, but he nodded, nonetheless. He started moving the ring towards the middle finger on his right hand, but he never got a chance to put the ring on.
Just as the ring was closing distance on his finger, the shadow slayer that had been following John landed in front of Rex, and he quickly snatched the ring, smirking as he did so. "Thanks for the gift, kid." he stated in a menacing tone, and before anyone could react, the slayer was off, speeding throughout the nights skies at full speed.
"HEY! GET BACK HERE! YOU SON-OF-A—" Chaos yelled at full volume as he took off after the ring thief, a bright blue streak marking his trail.
Control looked after her brother, and then her view shifted to her lifeless uncle. Finally, her view rested on the teenager in front of her. She held out her hand to him.
"You won't be able to catch them by yourself." she stated matter-of-factly, and Rex slowly shook off his stupor once again and he nodded in return. Before he took her hand, however, he looked over at John's lifeless body, and he ran over to him. Rex picked John up and shouldered him ever-so-carefully. He returned to Control's side in an instant.
"We can't just leave him here. He deserves better." he said, and Control gave him sad, sullen, heartfelt smile. Rex didn't know John, but he knew that he was a hero, and that he deserved better. Control couldn't agree more.
She held out her hand once again, and this time, Rex took it. The physical contact made him want to blush, but Control beat him to it. They both looked away from each other as they started to blush, while they began to run, Control taking the lead. Rex was now able to keep up with her, due to the physical contact. They took off, and a noticeable red streak was left in their wake. The two stormed off, chasing after Chaos, chasing after the ring thief, and all-the-while heading west—towards America.
Rex had an obligation now—one to the planet, to its people, to that ring, and to John Stewart. Rex would not fail them. He was tired of failing.
Jai West and his wife, Jane Jordan-West, sighed as their child ran circles around them. Jane shook her head. If she had still had her power ring, then her son would be under control right now. But the Guardians of the Universe, even though they were clearly in-need of Lanterns, had stripped her of her ring and her distinctions—all because of a few legal issues. She rubbed her temples and looked to her husband angrily.
"What?" he asked aptly.
"This," she started, pointing to her five-year-old son, "is your fault." she finished furiously.
Jai shrugged, seeming sorrowful, while his bold brown hair and bashful brown eyes seemed to betray his sense of pride in his son. "Eh, he's a speedster. What do you want him to do? Slow down?" he questioned comically.
Jane shook her head, her tangled brown hair warily whipping around as she did so. She sighed again, as their son, Jacob Jordan-West, zoomed in, and out, of every room in the house—traveling faster than the speed of sound.
Jai couldn't catch his son because his own metagene was no longer active. Metagenes were the genes that had been actively adapted in humans, after the White Martians had interfered in their evolution. These genes activated, when enough energy was administered to the individual human—and that energy usually came from the brainwaves that signaled that the individual needed the gene to be active, so the individual could survive.
During his final moments with his sister, Jai had terminated his metagene—the one that gave him, and every other member of the Flash Family, access to the Speed-Force. Jai had shared speed with his sister. And, when she had needed more, to be able to defeat the Hero Hunters that were after her, Jai had complied, completely draining his own metabolisms, and giving his own sister all of his "Vibration-Vitality," which completely severed his own connection to the Speed-Force.
In the process, though, his twin sister had become powerful enough to defeat her enemies—although she had to sacrifice herself to do it. Jai knew that she would have to do that, and he had begged her to allow him to be the one to make the sacrifice. But she wouldn't let him. Jane was pregnant, and he was married. He had a family—one that needed him. Iris didn't have one. He begged her to see reason, and she did. She saw that the only way to defeat these enemies, and spare her family their wrath—was to do it herself, using all of the power that she could muster.
Iris would never have let Jai make that sacrifice. And Jai would never forgive himself for that. She died, while she looked her enemies in their eyes, as she took them with her.
Wally West, the father of Iris and Jai, had outrun Death itself. But Iris had charged, head-first, right at Death. And she had beat it.
The worst part of her death was the fact that Iris had left a part of herself behind—a part that needed Iris. Iris had left her daughter. And Jai had always tried to raise the girl as best as he could, to train her, teach her, and temper her. And he had succeeded. But he couldn't give her the one thing that she needed—but never asked for. He couldn't give the girl her mother.
Jacob Jordan-West continued to race rapidly throughout the house as his two depowered parents—both of which were former superheroes—stood over their kitchen counter waiting for him to stop.
"Jake, honey, would you mind slowing down a little? You're giving your mother a headache." Jai requested.
Jacob stopped suddenly in front of his father, the young boy's brown hair and golden eyes shining with youth, innocence, and deviousness.
"But, dad, I just have so much energy, today! Hey! When Uncle Bart gets here, can I race him?!" Jake asked excitedly, jumping up and down.
"You'll have to ask him, yourself—if he ever does get here." Jai said seriously. Bart was running late. He was always late—which was typical for a speedster.
Today was Isabella's sixth birthday, and there was no way that Bart would miss his niece's birthday. But he wouldn't be on time, either.
"Okay! Well, until he gets here, though, I just have to burn some of this energy off!" Jake said suddenly, as he began to take off once again. He didn't make it far, though. A blitzing blur knocked Jake off of his feet, as he raced towards the stairs.
Jake landed dully on the linoleum floor. The blur slowed down to reveal the form of six-year-old Isabella Iris West. Her fired-red hair had natural black streaks in it, and her dark brown eyes completed her appearance in an oddly fitting way. The girl had her hair up in two pigtails, and she was wearing her mother's goggles. The smile on her face was worth more money than Jai or Jane had collectively.
"Morning, Uncle Jai! Morning, Aunt Jane!" Isabella said happily, speeding over to the two of them, and kissing them both on the cheek.
"Morning, Izzy." they both said in unison, happy to have the child that was not hyperactive in their presence.
Jake rubbed the back of his head, as he walked over to Izzy and his parents. "Ow, Izzy! That hurt!" he said sadly.
She shrugged. "Aunt Jane and Uncle Jai asked you to calm down. You should have listened." she reasoned.
"Oh, bless you, child." Jane said happily, praising Izzy's actions.
Izzy smiled in response. "Man, that's not fair! You can't be their favorite child, and their favorite niece! I should get one title!" Jake complained, looking at his cousin with envy.
"Hey, I earned those titles!" Izzy proclaimed proudly.
Jake opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, the doorbell rang.
Jane and Jai looked to one another, and then they both got up from their seated positions and went to the front door.
Jai opened the door, to find his cousin, Bart Allen, standing there in jeans and yellow shirt. His chest and face were obstructed by the large amount of presents that he was currently carrying.
Izzy's eyes went wide at the sight of all of the presents.
Jane and Jai helped him inside, taking some of the presents from him. They placed all of the presents in the backyard, next to the cake on the table.
"Uncle Bart!" Izzy said happily, as she flew into his arms when he returned.
"Hey there, kido!" he said, equally as happy, as he patted her on the back.
She released him, still smiling. "Are all of those presents for me?" she asked incredulously. Bart chuckled and nodded.
"Sure are, Speed-Demon! Tell you what, why don't you go on out there and open one up right now. Call it a freebie." Bart said kindly.
"Really?!" she asked, eyeing her uncle with hope. He nodded. Iris turned to Jai and Jane. "Can I, please, you guys? Pretty please?!" she asked them pleadingly, bouncing up and down.
"Okay, fine. But just one. We'll wait until your friends get here to open the rest." Jane said, smiling as she did so.
"Yeah! C'mon Jake! Help me pick out which one to open!" Izzy said happily, speeding off into the backyard. Her cousin followed her quickly.
"Quick little road-runner, isn't she? How fast is she now? Mach 20?" Bart asked, intrigued.
"Mach 30." Jai corrected him.
"Whoa. No one has ever gotten up to that speed, at her age! That's incredible! She'll break the light-barrier, before she's ten!" Bart said happily, practically exploding with pride. "She's got some kind of energy!" Bart exclaimed.
"Yeah, well, when your uncle spoils you, like how you spoil her, you tend to get excited a lot." Jai said seriously.
Bart eyed Jai seriously. "Look, someone has to spoil her. And we all know that her father won't do it." Bart spat vehemently.
"You know, very well, that if her father knew that she even existed, there would be nothing on this planet that would be able to keep him from her." Jai defended the girl's father.
"Yeah? Well, how hard is it to figure out? He is the son of the world's greatest detective, after all!" Bart said, angrily.
Jane sighed. "Damian is doing what he needs to do. He's lost enough, Bart. If he finds out that he's missed six years of his daughter's life, it will kill him. You know that's true. He was an arrogant, egotistical, know-it-all. But he cared. He loved Iris. And, I guarantee you, that the moment that he finds out about Izzy, he'll be right next to her—making-up for lost time, and then some." Jane said sincerely, putting an arm around Bart.
"Yeah? Well, what's taking him so long." Bart asked, his anger diminishing.
"He's doing what he has to do. He's becoming who he has to become. And we can't stop that. We have to wait for him to finish, to come to us. We all know that the world needs Batman." Jai said sternly.
Bart sighed and nodded. The three adults all exhaled and looked out the back door, watching the two young speedsters play, oblivious to the current condition of the world—the world that desperately needed heroes.
A/N: Well, I hope that you all enjoyed that chapter. I know. It was depressing. But, remember, things have to get worse, before they can better. And, they WILL get BETTER! On a side-note, any and all of you, wonderful readers/reviewers, should surely check-out my profile, and see what other of my publicly posted FanFics might interest you! There may be a few. If you have read a book, then the chances are that I have read it as well, and if I have read it, then I'd love to talk about it! Message me, if any of you guys have any questions, or just want to chat, about ANYTHING. I'd love to hear from you! Well, stay tuned for the next update, and please click that subscribe/alert button, if you want the alerts for updates on this story, or simply message me, and ask me to message you every time I update, as I would be HAPPY to do so! So, please R&R, and stay tuned for the next update!
