My thanks, as always, to piecesofyourheart, AnotherChance, futureforensic, RebelByrdie and Abby for their kind words of encouragement.
Batman & Benson 3
Chapter Ten
Two-Face abruptly waved his arms like a conductor leading an orchestra, and the goons surrounding him opened fire on the Batmobile. Batman remained within the safety of his vehicle, which was unharmed as the bullets merely bounced off of its armored skin. Batman recognized the man who stood next to Two-Face as being none other than the very same Bernard Romano whom he had sought.
While his goons continued firing, Two-Face gestured to another man, who clicked a remote in his hand.
Before Batman could even respond to the gunfire, the parked vans on either side of the Batmobile both exploded into fireballs. Batman grunted as the force of the explosion rocked the Batmobile, and knocked the group of gunmen back to the ground. Apparently they had been just as surprised by the blasts as Batman was.
'It doesn't pay to be working for Two-Face,' Batman grimly thought, as he drove the Batmobile onto the sidewalk, making sure not to hit any of the downed gunmen who were strewn all over the ground. His quarry ran around the side of the bank, heading toward a small park.
Batman gave chase to Two-Face, Romano and the third man for as long as the sidewalk lasted. When he came to a retaining wall, which the men had climbed up over, he had to reluctantly bring the Batmobile to a halt. Glancing up, he now saw what they were running for.
A Vietnam-era Huey helicopter hovered low over the small park behind the bank. It came to a landing, allowing Two-Face and his boys to climb on board. Batman got out of the Batmobile and ran for the chopper, which abruptly took off.
When it became clear that he would not reach it in time, he considered shooting a grappling line at it. But it became clear that once Batman was caught dangling from the chopper, he could be bashed against the surrounding buildings--something which he was sure Two-Face would enjoy doing.
So he did the next best thing.
He pulled out a homing emitter from his utility belt, attached it to a grapple gun, and fired it at the underside of the chopper. The bright red flash that Batman saw underneath the Huey's body confirmed for him that the homing emitter was firmly in place. Batman might not be able to directly follow Two-Face in person, but he could still learn where his hideout was located.
Watching the chopper as it flew off, Batman realized something: one half of it was covered with rust spots, while the other half looked as neat and pristine as if it had just rolled out of the factory.
'You're really stretching the Two-Face motif to the limit, aren't you, Harvey?' Batman thought, as he got inside the Batmobile and switched on a hand-held pad.
The homing tracking system was actually set up on the main computer back in the Batcave, but the signal was relayed to this held-held unit. Batman had created this redundancy within the system so his quarry could still be tracked no matter what happened to his equipment out in the field.
'Two-Face isn't the only one who does things in twos,' Batman thought, as he drove back to the street, passing a police cruiser that was responding to the crime scene.
'Wait a minute,' Batman realized. 'Twos…Two-Face…oh Harvey, you crazy bastard….'
Last night, Two-Face crashed the gate at Rupert Thorne's mansion just so he could send a message: in the form of the half-burned body of Thorne's lackey. But almost at the same time, Two-Face's goons launched their assault on Wayne Manor in an attempt to kidnap Rachel. It was a two-pronged attack, with the assault on Thorne's being nothing more than a diversion for the attempted kidnapping of Rachel. And tonight, in his robbery on the Twin Sentinels National Bank, Two-Face didn't get away with any money at all--and Batman had noted that this was something that Two-Face didn't appear to be too broken up over.
"This was just another diversion," Batman muttered, as he glanced down at the tracking screen. It showed Two-Face's helicopter leaving the Gotham City limits. "Two-Face isn't headed to his hideout, he's headed for his real score!"
Noting the direction in which the chopper headed, Batman was willing to bet that Two-Face was on his way towards Rupert Thorne's country home. And with a large part of the Gotham City police force now tied up at the Twin Sentinels bank robbery attempt, this would be the perfect time for Two-Face to strike out at Thorne.
"Damn it," Batman muttered, as he pushed the petal to the metal. 'Of all the nights I decide to leave the Batwing home,' he angrily thought, 'it had to be this one!'
B&B
For Dick Grayson, being left alone in the Batcave was almost as good as being left alone in a comic book store. Wait, who was he kidding? Being in the Batcave was WAY better than being in any comic book shop. It was almost as if he had died and went to geek heaven.
The Bat computer alone was an awesome set up. Multiple flat screen TVs, all capable of displaying every single cable channel in crystal clear high def. Dick sat in the chair, presently watching four movies, two anime TV shows, and an MTV reality show--all at the same time.
'I could really get used to this,' he thought happily. 'All I need is popcorn.'
One of the movies, a Jet Li action film--which was on the center screen--was abruptly switched off, replaced by a flashing red 'ALERT' sign.
The sound was cut off as a computer voice imposingly said, "Alert, alert, alert," over and over.
Dick, startled, stood up and helplessly stared at the screen. Not knowing what he did--nor what to do now--he sheepishly said, "Um, sorry!"
The alert was replaced by another message that read: 'Homing tracking system engaged.'
Then the center computer screen switched to a display that showed a blinking red dot that traveled over a map of the greater Gotham City area. The dot was out of the city proper, and traveling over the countryside, where Wayne Manor was located. It went past Wayne Manor, and continued on a Northwestern track.
The dot arrived at a section on the map that was labeled 'RT Estate' in bold highlight. Manipulating the mouse, Dick placed the cursor over that label, and it expanded to read: 'Rupert Thorne's Estate.'
"Thorne!" he said aloud in shock. All along that bastard's country home was just a few miles up the road from here.
The dot appeared to hover around the estate, and Dick ached to know what was going on up there.
"To hell with it," he said, memorizing the address. "I'm gonna find out."
Shutting off the movies and other entertainment--but leaving the tracking system running, just in case Bruce needed to see it later--Dick left the Batcave and went upstairs. Once in his bedroom, he put on his Robin costume then put on his street clothes over it. Stuffing the mask into his pants pocket, Dick went down to the garage, where he mounted the BMW.
He rode the bike out past the police cordon, waving to the cops as he passed them by. Then, once he knew he was all alone on a desolate dirt road, Dick pulled off his clothes, revealing the Robin costume. Stuffing his street clothes into one of the cargo cases, Dick slipped the mask on and then took off on the BMW, headed for Thorne's place.
Dick didn't know what was happening up there, or what he would do--and he felt guilty about breaking his promise to Bruce--but he just couldn't let this opportunity to meet Thorne face to face slip by.
B&B
Chloe sat curled up on the sofa in her motel room, trying to read a crappy paperback she'd just bought, when her cell phone rang.
Picking it up, she gasped when she saw it was a call from Lana. Placing the phone to her ear, she said, "Hello?"
"It's me," Lana said. "I'm in Gotham City right now. Can I meet you right away?"
"Yes!" Chloe said eagerly, tossing the book away. "Where and when?"
B&B
"Mercy!" Vinnie called from his seat in the back of the van.
A curtain at the front flew open as Mercy peered back at him. "What?"
"Lang just called Sullivan," Vinnie told her from his control panel in the back of the van. "They're meeting in the park just across the street from the Gotham City Museum of Natural History in fifteen minutes."
Mercy smiled broadly. "About damn time. Let's go!"
B&B
As Robin approached Thorne's country estate, he rode the BMW as far as he dared before he finally parked it on the side of the road behind some thick foliage. He could hear the gunfire from here, and it sounded like a full-scale war was waging just down the road.
Robin went the rest of the way on foot, crouching down so as to not get shot--accidentally, or otherwise. The front gates had been smashed in by the same armored car that crashed the gate at Thorne's city mansion. The truck was parked in front of the house, with all of its doors flung wide open. He could hear something with a large motor roaring close by.
Taking cover behind the thick trunk of a tree, Robin peered out and saw an old helicopter, looking like it was straight out of the movie Apocalypse Now, hovering over the house. It landed on the grass, and Two-Face emerged from the smashed-out patio doors with a group of goons. They carried large bags of what looked like money and other swag that they stole from the mansion.
A second team of heavily armed goons left the mansion and quickly got into the armored car. As they drove off, the helicopter also took off into the night sky.
Once Two-Face and his goons were gone, Robin stepped out from behind the tree and stared at the estate. It was quiet, very quiet. Robin ran towards the house. Although there wasn't much that he could do against a well-armed army like that, the least Robin could do now was go see if anybody inside needed his help--anybody except Thorne, of course.
Entering the shattered home, Robin saw bullet holes everywhere, along with the bodies of several thugs laying on the floor, still gripping their guns. They were beyond anybody's help, so Robin stepped past them and went down a hallway, where he was saddened to see the body of a woman lying dead on the floor. There was a bullet hole in her forehead, and her last surprised expression was still frozen on her pretty face.
Seeing a doorway at the end of the hall, Robin went through it and found Rupert Thorne. Or what was left of him.
Thorne sat back in a chair, in the center of a spacious office, his arms tied to the arms of the chair. At first Robin thought that Thorne's neck was tied, as well. Yet when he got a better look, he became sickened.
Rupert Thorne's head had almost been decapitated from having been strangled from behind by razor wire.
'Razor wire,' Robin thought, holding his hand up to his mouth in disgust and horror. 'Sweet Jesus….'
"Take a good look," a male voice said from behind.
Robin, startled, whirled around to face whoever spoke in a full combat stance. He relaxed when he saw the Batman was standing there.
"I said, take a good look," Batman told him, his voice sounding angry. "There's your vengeance, Robin. Thorne is dead…killed in the worst possible way. Feel better, now?"
"I-I'm gonna be sick," Robin muttered, feeling woozy.
"Do not throw up!" Batman firmly ordered him. "If you do so, you'll be leaving behind DNA evidence which can be used to trace you."
"This is just an insane game to you, isn't it?" Robin said.
"If you lose at this game, you will get killed," Batman said, his tone of voice softening as he stared at Thorne's body. He glanced at Robin. "We should get out of here, now. There's nothing we can do for them."
Robin followed Batman down the hallway, passing the body of that poor woman once more. He was so stunned by the entire scene that Robin followed Batman to the Batmobile, completely forgetting the BMW bike that he had parked further up the road.
"Wait, I gotta ride the bike back," Robin said.
"Not any more," Batman said, gesturing at a column of smoke that arose from down the road. "I got rid of it. You've probably been seen riding it, and it became something that could have been traced back to Wayne Manor, thanks to the license plate. You're riding back with me."
Robin was so shaken by the scene of death and carnage around him that he didn't even give the destruction of the BMW bike a second thought. As he got into the Batmobile, all Robin could think about was that poor dead woman.
Batman was quiet for a time as he drove the Batmobile down a narrow country road. Then he said, "What are you thinking, Dick?"
"About that woman back there, she didn't look like she was a part of the mob."
"She was a part of the mob," Batman said. "Her name was Candace Leopold, and she worked for Thorne in an administrative capacity. She never picked up a gun; yet she was responsible for running Thorne's criminal empire for him, much like a major-domo."
"She was no angel," Robin said. "But she still didn't deserve to be killed like that."
"Agreed. She deserved to serve time in prison for her actions, not be murdered like she was. But that's what happens to somebody when they get in the way of vengeace, Dick. Two-Face was coming for Thorne, and nothing--and nobody--was going to stand in his way."
"Two-Face is a monster," Robin darkly muttered. "He needs to be stopped."
"He will be, Dick. He will be."
B&B
'Perfect,' Catwoman thought, as she hunched down on the rooftop.
Across the street from her, the Gotham City Museum of Natural History was closing down for the night, with the last of the staff walking out a side door.
'Just wait a few more minutes, and the place should be empty of everybody but security guards,' Catwoman thought with a smile. She looked forward to toying with security guards--they were always so much fun to scare. Since the security system in the museum was of the garden variety version, ripping off the Eye Of Isis will almost be too easy, so Catwoman figured that she might as well have a little fun on the side.
She did another sweep of the street, and was pleased to see that it was empty--which was typical for a late Sunday night. Catwoman spotted a blond woman in the park across the street. The woman looked around impatiently, as if waiting for somebody. She didn't look like an undercover cop to Catwoman--but one could never be sure.
Catwoman watched as another woman with dark hair arrived in the park, walking brisky towards the blonde. The blonde waved to her in greeting. The dark haired woman, seeing the blonde, waved back as she strode across an walkway intersection in the park--
--and then she was flung ten feet in the air as a van abruptly came out of nowhere and struck her.
"OH MY GOD!" Catwoman cried in horror. She watched as the blonde ran towards the dark-haired woman, who lay very still on the ground. The van came to a stop at the edge of the park and several people--two men and a woman--got out and stared back.
The woman abruptly pointed back at the blonde, who was bent over and administering aid to the stricken dark-haired woman. And Catwoman instantly recognized who the woman who got out of the van was.
It was Mercy.
All thoughts about raiding the museum, of having fun with the security guards, of stealing the Eye Of Isis…all of that vanished from Catwoman's mind as she glared with loathing at the woman by the van.
"Mercy," Catwoman snarled hatefully.
B&B
"LANA!" Chloe cried, as she ran towards the woman who lay on the ground. She had watched in terror as the van suddenly appeared on the walkway and deliberately mowed her down.
When Chloe arrived, Lana lay staring straight up at the night sky. There was a trickle of blood that flowed from the corner of her mouth, which was moving slightly, as if she was trying to saying something.
"No, honey, don't talk," Chloe said, as she carefully placed her hands on the strickened woman's body. "Just relax. I can help you, Lana. Just relax."
Chloe knew that this would be a major healing job, one that would take a lot out of her--and the van that tried to kill Lana was idling near by. But she had no choice; if Chloe didn't move, and quickly, Lana would die right here. Right now, Chloe didn't care about the message that Lana was trying to give her. All that mattered was saving her life.
Despite the agitation that she felt, Chloe calmed herself by taking a deep breath, and concentrated on healing Lana. Soon she felt the familiar tingling warmth flow from her hands, surging into Lana's broken body.
B&B
"What's she doing?" Vince asked.
Mercy, Vince and Phil had gotten out of the van to make certain that the Lang bitch was dead--only to see Chloe Sullivan kneeling over her, with her eyes closed and her hands on Lang's body. After doing this for several seconds, Chloe then abruptly flinched, as if receiving an electric shock, and then she fainted dead away on the ground.
"Damn it," Mercy said, suddenly remembering a report she'd read once on Chloe Sullivan. "She's a mutant, with healing powers. She probably just healed Lang of all her injuries!"
"She's a mutant?" Phil looked worried. "She's not one of them X-Men, is she?"
"I don't know, and I don't care," Mercy said. "Just get over there and kill them both!"
"But what if the other X-Men show up?" Phil said nervously. "One of them's pretty scary; he's got these metallic claws that stick out of his hands, see, and--"
"The sooner you plug them, the sooner we can get the hell out of here," Mercy said, losing her patience. "I'd like to avoid the cops just as much as these X-Men of yours, Phil!"
Vince patted Phil on the shoulder as he pulled out his gun. "She's right, Philly. C'mon, let's make this a quick hit and spilt this scene."
"I'll keep watch," Mercy told them, as she remained by the van. She glanced around the square in front of the museum, and was pleased to see that there didn't appear to be anybody around--at least not yet.
'Come on, come on, what's taking you morons?' Mercy thought, as she waited to hear the sound of gunfire behind her. 'How long does it take to pop a couple of dumb broads?'
When nothing happened, Mercy turned around and glared at the men. "Damn it, what's taking so--?"
Mercy stopped dead at the sight that greeted her.
Phil and Vince lay sprawled out on the ground, while a very angry-looking Catwoman stood above them, glaring directly at Mercy.
Mercy reached for her gun, but just as she brought it out, the gun was knocked from her hand by Catwoman's whip--which the feline burglar expertly lashed out with in time.
"Payback's a bitch," Catwoman said, as she strode over to Mercy. "And so am I!"
B&B
"This is for Holly," Catwoman snarled, as she slugged Mercy in the face. As the woman staggered back, Catwoman stepped forward and belted her again on the other side of her face, knocking her to the ground. "That was for me!"
When Mercy, who lay on the ground, tried to get back up, Catwoman walked over and kicked her in the chin. Mercy fell back down to the ground with a grunt, now unconscious.
"And that was just for being a rotten little skank," Catwoman whispered harshly at the prone woman.
With Mercy and her goons down for good, Catwoman turned her attention to the two women who lay on the grass. The dark haired one was struck by the van, and as Catwoman knelt beside her, she expected the woman to be dead. But to Catwoman's amazment, the woman's pulse was strong and steady; she appeared to be in a deep, relaxing sleep.
"What the hell?" Catwoman murmured. She was glad to see this woman was all right, but seeing how she was truck dead on by that van, Catwoman couldn't help but be amazed.
The blonde woke up and stared fearfully at Catwoman. She appeared to be very weak, for she could barely move. All she could do was raise one hand slightly and say, "No…."
"Easy, darling," Catwoman assured her. "I may be a thief, but hurting people isn't my game. You and your friend are safe with me."
"Is Lana…all right?" the blonde asked.
Catwoman nodded. "She's sound asleep. And for somebody who just got hit by a van, she's in great shape." She frowned, recalling that the blonde had knelt by Lana with her hands over her body. "Did you heal her?"
"Y-Yes," the blonde said.
"What's your name?"
"Chloe…."
"That's a neat trick, Chloe." Catwoman glanced up at the sound of voices coming down the pathway. When she went to investigate, she saw a trio of young men--looking to be in their early twenties; college students from Gotham U, most likely--all gaping over the prone bodies of Mercy and her henchmen.
"Aw, dude, look at this!" one of them said in awe. "You think the Batman did this?"
"The Batman was just here?" another replied. "That's awesome!"
The third man saw Catwoman staring at them. Stammering anxiously, he tapped the shoulders of his friends and pointed at her.
Catwoman merely shook her head in disgust as all three men stared at her in a mixture of fear and wonder. "What are you dweebs gawking at? You mind calling 911?" She gestured at Chloe and Lana. "We've got people who need medical attention here!"
B&B
"Ok," Olivia said, as she placed the last of the pizzas down on the kitchen table. "That's all of them."
Alex placed a stack of paper plates on the table as Barbra began to greedily open one of the pizza boxes.
Rachel got a set of plastic cups from the cupboard and placed one on the table for each diner: for herself; Olivia; Alex; Barbra; Bullock and Montoya, as well as two for Bruce and Dick. She wished Alfred were here to join them, but took solace in the fact that he was looking much better when they left him in the hospital. The doctor said that he was doing so well that they were considering letting him go home tomorrow, which would be great news.
Rachel stared at Barbra, who was busy serving both Bullock and Montoya a slice of pizza each. Bullock cast an uneasy gaze on the girl, and muttered something about how wrong it was to have the police commissioner's daughter serving dinner to a mere palooka like him.
Barbra paused to gave Bullock a frown. "What's a palooka?"
Rachel smiled, as she shook her head slightly in disbelief. 'And to think that this sweet kid is Batgirl!' she thought.
Olivia had told her earlier, when they were alone during a quiet moment at the hospital, and Rachel had been stunned. She was even further stunned to find out the reason why Barbra had become Batgirl: because she was madly in love with the Batman.
'Can't say I blame her,' Rachel thought. 'There are times, when Bruce is wearing that Batsuit, that I just want to--'
"Are Bruce and Dick home?" Olivia asked.
Rachel was startled out of her little daydream. "Um, I don't know, Liv. Let me check the 'study.'"
"Wait, wait!" Bullock said, as he quickly dropped his slice back onto the plate. "We gotta go with you! We're your protection, y'know!"
Rachel suddenly found herself in a quandary--she was about to go and see if Bruce and Dick were in the Batcave, but she couldn't very well do that if Bullock was going to come with her.
Thankfully, Olivia came to her rescue. "Harvey, Renee--you guys stay and eat," Olivia said. "I'll go with her."
"Thanks for that," Rachel said, as she and Olivia walked down the hallway. "I was wondering what to say to them."
Olivia just smiled as she shook her head slightly. "You know, if somebody had told me a few years ago that I'd be helping to cover for a superhero, I would have thought they were nuts!"
However, their mirthful mood had evaporated once they reached the Batcave. Bruce sat at the computer, trying to locate some information while Dick, still clad in his Robin costume--sans his mask--angrily paced around the floor behind him.
"It's over for you now," Bruce was saying when the women entered.
"But I've told you that it's no longer about vengeance," Dick said. "I want to help you out, now."
"I work alone," Bruce said flatly.
"What happened?" Rachel asked.
"Rupert Thorne is dead," Bruce told her. "Two-Face killed him, along with most of his people."
Rachel shared a stunned looked with Olivia. "Did this just happen recently?" Rachel asked.
Bruce nodded. "Two-Face hit him at his country home, just a few miles from here. I followed his chopper using a homing emittor, but was too late." He glanced sharply at Dick and added, "We both were too late."
Dick cast a sheepish look at Rachel--and she got the feeling that his going out as Robin was something he did on his own.
"We tried following the homing beacon after the attack," Bruce said. "But Two-Face was smart enough to ditch the chopper and set fire to it in a field. So we still don't have any leads as to where his hideout is."
"And what's going on here?" Olivia asked. "Between you two?"
"I was just explaining to Dick that, since Thorne is now dead, there's no need for Robin to stay in business."
"But now that I've seen the type of evil that you fight on an almost daily basis, I still want to help," Dick insisted. "I could watch your back out there, Bruce."
"It's not that I don't appreciate the offer, Dick, but--and I say this for the last time--I work alone."
The way Bruce said it made it sound very final--and as much as Rachel agreed with his decision, she still couldn't help but feel sorry for Dick, who glared at the floor as he slowly shook his head with frustration.
"Hey Dick, we've got plenty of pizza upstairs," Olivia said, trying to lighten his mood. "We could sure use your help in eating it. So what'd you say?"
"Sorry, Liv," he muttered, as he left. "But I wouldn't be very good company tonight."
Rachel and Olivia stood awkwardly as Dick stalked out of the Batcave. Bruce continued searching on the computer, until he sat back with a heavy sigh. "Damn it…."
"You made the right decision," Rachel told him.
"It's not that," Bruce said, as he got up. He was still clad in the Batsuit, without the cape and cowl. "I've realized that our friend Two-Face has a fixation on the number two. He operates using a two-pronged attack method. Last night, he rammed the gates of Thorne's city home while sending a team here to abduct Rachel. Tonight, he launched an attack on a bank while sending an advance team over to Thorne's country mansion. He joined them via chopper. And the name of the bank he hit was the Twin Sentinels National Bank."
"Just what we need," Olivia said with disgust, "another super villain with a weird motif…."
"I've been trying to find any location within Gotham City involving the number two that he might be using as a hideout," Bruce said. "But so far, I've come up with nothing."
"Well, why don't you take a break and have some pizza with us?" Rachel said. "Provided you change out of the Batsuit, first."
Bruce shook his head. "Can't."
"You got someplace you gotta be?" Olivia asked.
"Actually, yeah, I do," Bruce said. "Superman has invited me to join a group of superheroes that he's forming. There's a meeting tonight, out in the woods near Metropolis."
"What?" Rachel said, puzzled. "Is this some kind of a bowling league, or something?"
Bruce chuckled at that. "Nothing so prosaic. As Superman explained it, it will be a league of superheroes who will help fight crime and help humanity all over the world." He glanced at Olivia. "Their name is the Justice League. He says he got the name from you, Liv."
Olivia's eyes were comically wide with shock. "What?! No…when did he…?"
"Last year, just after Superman and Supergirl helped us defeat the Riddler's robot army," Bruce prompted. "We were standing in the street, and you suggested that we--Superman, Supergirl and me--start a group?"
"OH MY GOD!" Olivia said, looking mortified. "I never thought he'd take me seriously! I was just nervously babbling away…I mean, what was I supposed to say to freaking Superman?! 'Hey Supes, how are ya?'"
"Well, you've certainly said enough," Bruce said with a teasing smile. "This is all your fault, Liv. I hope you're happy."
"Bruce, knock it off," Rachel told him. From the way these two carried on with each other, she could almost swear they actually were siblings. "What are you going tell them?"
"I'm not about to join a superhero group anymore than I'm about to take on a crime fighting partner," Bruce replied. "Normally, I would just blow this thing off. But since it was Superman who asked me to attend, I feel I owe it to him to at least be there."
Rachel nodded. "We'll tell everybody that Lucius called you away with a boardroom emergency. And we'll keep some pizza in the fridge for you to reheat later."
"Great, thanks. I won't be too long," Bruce said.
After they had left the Batcave, Rachel noticed Olivia was unusually quiet in the elevator ride up to the second level. "You all right, Liv?"
"I'm still dazed," she admitted. "The thought that somebody like Superman would even pay attention to me, to what I have to say, is just….wow! You know?"
"I'm not really surprised," Rachel said, smiling. "You can be a pretty persuasive person, Liv."
B&B
"I'd like to thank everybody for making it tonight," Kal-El said, making sure that his voice was loud enough to be heard over the crowd.
And what an impressive crowd it was, gathered as they were in the clearing of the heavily wooded area. Wonder Woman stood by his side on the massive flat rock that they used as a natural stage. Standing before them was the Flash, Green Lantern, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Hawkman, Hawkgirl and Supergirl.
"You called us all here to join something called a Justice League?" Green Arrow said. He pulled the emerald hood he wore back from his face, revealing a youthful-looking man with blond hair and a goatee. "Hope you realize that I don't have any superpowers worth a squat."
Black Canary stood by his side; her expression appeared to be just as wary as Green Arrow's tone of voice.
"It's not just an exclusive club for people with superpowers," Superman told him. "Both Wonder Woman and I have come to realize that there are a great deal of heroes in the world today--people both with and without powers--who are making a difference. And it's my hope that this new group will help all of us to better help others."
Kal-El noted that Green Arrow's response to his statement was to share a skeptical look with Black Canary. Both Green Lantern and Supergirl nodded their heads in agreement. The Hawks both stood as impassively as a pair of Egyptian statues and were thus unreadable. The Flash raised his hand like a schoolboy.
Wonder Woman gestured at him. "Please, Flash, if you have something to say, then speak your mind freely."
"Um, I was just wondering why you didn't invite the Batman," the Flash said.
"Yeah," Black Canary added. "Ollie and I were wondering the same thing, too."
"We heard that the Batman was a vampire," Hawkgirl said, with a look of disapproval in her eyes. "Would such a being even be worthy of joining a group of heroes?"
Green Arrow and Black Canary both burst into laughter at that.
Angered, Hawkman turned towards them and said, "Did she say something humorous?"
"You have no idea, featherhead," Green Arrow said, still chortling. "And you're even funnier than she is!"
"Batman isn't a vampire," Superman assured them all. "I worked with him during the seige of Gotham City by the robotic army that was unleashed by the Riddler. Trust me, he's as heroic--and human--as they come."
"The reports I heard said you were largely responsible for fighting off those robots, Superman," Green Lantern interjected.
"Both Kal-el and I were taken captive by the Riddler, and subjected to kryptonite," Supergirl spoke up. "The Batman came and saved us. If it weren't for the Dark Knight, neither Superman or I would even be here today."
Kal-el, realizing how much Kara had disliked the Batman, was deeply impressed at how she had defended him just now. He nodded at her in approval--to which she just shrugged and added, "Just stating a fact, cuz."
Green Arrow gestured at Supergirl as he glared at Hawkman. "Hear that? Huh? Does that sound like a vampire to you, birdbrain?"
Hawkman's hands balled into fists as he took several threatening steps towards Green Arrow. "I grow weary of listening to you speak…."
"Then just try and stop me," Green Arrow said, as he reached behind his back for his bow. "I'll pluck your feathers so fast, you'll--"
"Whoa! Whoa, Ollie," Black Canary said, stepping in front of him. "Back off, right now. We didn't come here to fight."
"But he did," Arrow said, nodding at Hawkman. "And I figure, why disappoint him?"
Hawkgirl had also stepped in front of Hawkman to stop him as well--until she did a double take at the large green shield that had magically appeared between them and Green Arrow. It came from Green Lantern's ring.
"How about if everybody just calm down," the Lantern said. "Ok?"
"Great advice, GL," Kal-el added, letting out a sigh of relief. For a moment there, he thought he would have to break up a fight between those two.
Wonder Woman stared at the scene with regal distain and slowly shook her head. "Men," she said with obvious disgust. "Always fighting like little boys…."
"Hey, what?!" the Flash said, annoyed. "I'm just standing here, minding my own business. We're not all bad, princess!"
Before Kal-el could put this new fire out, he was stopped when a bone-chilling voice called out from the darkness: "Interesting bunch you've assembled here, Superman…."
That caused everyone to stop and take notice. "Who the hell said that?" Hawkman wanted to know.
"Great Hera!" Wonder Woman said, startled. She pointed off to the side.
Kal-el saw it as well. The Batman emerged from the blackness that lay just beyond their meeting space as if he were actually taking form from it. The Dark Knight appeared to have stepped out bodily from the shadows.
"Oh my God," Black Canary said in awe to Green Arrow. "It's really him, isn't it?"
Green Arrow nodded as he grinned broadly. "Dude sure knows how to make an entrance."
As the Batman approached Superman and Wonder Woman on the stone stage, the Amazonian Princess instinctively reached for her golden lasso, as if getting ready for combat. Kal-el grabbed her wrist and held it there; he was probably one of the few people on the planet who could do that to Wonder Woman.
For his part, Batman coolly looked Wonder Woman over, as if sizing her up as a potential threat.
"Easy, Diana," Superman said. "If you trust me, then you can trust him."
"Oh, for crying out loud!" Supergirl cried. "He may be creepy, but he's still one of the good guys! All right? Sheesh!"
"Still as boisterous as ever," the Batman dryly said to Superman, "isn't she?"
"Nice seeing you, too, Bats," Supergirl muttered.
"It is good to see you," Kal-el told Batman. "Thank you for coming."
"Well, you can hardly turn down an invite from Superman," Batman said.
"Um, excuse me? You wanna settle a little argument here, Batman?" the Flash asked. "Are you a vampire or not?"
The Batman turned and glared at the Flash--until the Scarlet Speedster took an involuntary step backwards. "Ooookay, then, let's just pretend I never said a word, alrighty?" the Flash anxiously said.
"Have you thought about what I asked you on top of police headquarters?" Kal-el asked.
"My answer still stands," Batman said firmly. "I must decline your invitation to join the League. Gotham City keeps me very busy."
"You came all the way out here just to turn him down?" Hawkman asked.
"I owed it to him," Batman explained. "If it weren't for Superman, and Supergirl, Gotham City would be in pretty bad shape right now."
"Which should be all the more reason why a group like this would work," Kal-el said, not giving up so easily. "There's strength in numbers, Batman."
"I work alone," Batman said bluntly. Then he raised his glove to his face and said, "Come here."
"Uh, did he mean us?" the Flash asked, confused.
Everybody was further startled when an obsidian-black craft arose silently from behind the cliff on which Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman all stood. The cockpit slid open, revealing an empty seat within.
Turning to Superman, Batman added, "Good luck--looks like you'll need it with this crew."
Batman then jumped into the seat of the craft, which closed over him as it abruptly swung sideways and soared off into the night with a flare of its rear jets.
"Ok, now that's cool!" the Flash stated. "I want one of those!"
"You're the fastest man alive," Green Lantern told him. "You don't need that thing."
"I know," the Flash said, smiling. "But I still want one."
Hawkman and Hawkgirl glanced at each other--then they both nodded, as if in agreement. Their wings expanded to their full span as they both lifted off into the night sky.
"Hawkman, Hawkgirl, wait!" Superman called.
Hawkman hovered over Kal-el. "We thank you for considering us for membership, Superman. But we are not interested at this time."
With that, the Hawks both flew away into the night.
Kal-el was disheartened to see Green Arrow and Black Canary were now leaving. "Thanks, Supes," Green Arrow called over his shoulder. "But this ain't really our scene, y'know? See ya around!"
Green Lantern abruptly brought his hand to his ear and listened to a sound that only he could hear. Then he said, "I'm needed on Oa. Good luck with the team, Superman."
"Are you still joining?" Supergirl called after him--yet Green Lantern, who had already shot up into the night sky, was well out of hearing range.
The Flash stared at Kal-el, Supergirl and Wonder Woman with an awkward expression on his face. "Sorry guys…."
"You're not thinking of joining?" Kal-el asked. "Why?"
"If it's about that remark I made earlier," Wonder Woman said, "then I apologize, Flash."
The Flash gestured at the three of them. "You three are among the most powerful people on the planet, while I'm just a guy who can run very fast. I probably wouldn't be able to offer much to the group. Um, I gotta go, too; I have an early day tomorrow."
"Would you please just reconsider your descision, Flash?" Superman asked.
"Um, yeah, I'll think about it," the Flash uneasily said, just before he sped off into the night.
Kal-el found himself standing with just Diana and Kara by his side. Despite their presence, the clearing still felt very lonely.
"Sorry Cuz," Supergirl said sadly.
"I'm not giving up," Kal-el said.
"It's still a good idea," Wonder Woman told him. "One well worth fighting for."
"Shouldn't have invited Batman," Kara said glumly. "Everybody left right after he did. What an arrogant jerk!"
"Don't blame him," Kal-el quickly said.
"No, she's right, Kal," Diana said. She angrily glared up in the direction where Batman had left. "He may not be a vampire, but he's still inhuman."
To Be Continued...