Night fell quickly, and everyone was worn out from the days excitement. Kal and Diana took Lara flying around Gotham while Selina tried to make the medical table Bruce was lying on more comfortable. Bruce had convinced her to at least let him sleep in their room by promising not to get up and start working till the morning.
"At least let me get the patrol reports Selina. I'm not going be able to sleep tonight anyways." Selina is fluffing up pillows and pulling the covers up around him before getting in beside him.
"You are going to rest. That means we will sit here doing nothing and enjoying the fact that we are still breathing. Even if it hurts a little to breathe right now. By the way when did we get old?" Bruce sighs in defeat.
"I'm old. You're the one who isn't aging at all. Must be a secret cat thing."
"You know my only weakness is flattery Bruce. You still aren't getting those reports. Oracle and Dick have everything covered. So, tonight you rest and if everything is still good in the morning you can go back to driving me crazy." Selina is keeping her distance from him and he looks toward her.
"I'm going to need a new suit now, hopefully the Beyond prototype can be finished soon."
"You can't be serious. You almost died and all you can think about is getting back into that damned cowl to go try and die again?" Bruce looks at her, clearly shocked by her words.
"You almost died today. I know its no big deal for you but for me…" Bruce reaches over to hold her, and she sobs softly into him.
"I could have lost you today Bruce. I don't know what I'd do if I had."
"You would have kept fighting Selina. We must keep fighting. The world is at stake." She turns to look directly at him.
"That's what you would do? If I died you'd just keep going? God you're so frustrating sometimes. I wouldn't stop fighting Bruce. I'll never stop. But you can't tell me this future we are trying to create and protect would be just as good if I weren't in it." He stares back, unwavering.
"Selina, I know. You think I don't? I know how close it was today. But I'm still here and the fight isn't over. The kids need me. The league is going to need me. I can't just stop." Her tears have stopped
"I know you have to Bruce. I just don't want to lose you before we win. I wanna be there when we win the final fight and I want you to kiss me while everyone cheers and celebrates it."
"Just a kiss?" Selina looks at him playfully.
"Unless you have gotten even kinkier than I remember." Bruce pulls Selina into him and kisses her deeply. They pull away and lean on each other.
"I'm going to be here Cat. I'm with you till the end and together we are going to save the world."
"I can't wait for the day Bat."
They smile at each other and try to get some rest. The times ahead would be just as perilous, but now they had just enough hope to see a brighter tomorrow.
In the skies of Gotham
Lara and Kal were having a little impromptu race. Kal wanted to see just how fast she was and had bit off more than he could chew. Lara had edged ahead of her father but after taking a sharp turn she almost ran into a building and stopped quickly before colliding with it. Kal zoomed past her and stopped proudly in front of Diana.
"I win!" Diana shakes her head and sarcastically cheers for him.
"I'm so proud of you Kal, you beat a 10-year-old in a race!"
"Hey she challenged me! Plus, she said she beat you. Can't have her beating the both of us just yet." Diana scowls at him and Lara flies up a little out of breath.
"That's no fair Daddy I had you if that building wasn't in the way."
"Obstacles are part of a race Lara. Guess this is your first lesson in not being a sore loser." Lara smiles brightly.
"Best two out of three?"
"No more racing tonight. We need to get our rest, we have much more work to do."
The three of them fly towards the Manor since that's were they'll be staying for the near future. Selina insisted that they stay there since Metropolis really wasn't safe for now. As they approached Kal stopped them in the courtyard before the entrance as he remembered the gifts he had brought for Diana and Lara.
"Wait you two I have something to give you." He reaches in his belt to grab two small boxes. Lara gasps and jumps up and down.
"A present? For me?" Kal hands her a box and gives the other to Diana. Diana smiles.
"Go ahead and open yours first sweetie." Lara tears into the box and unwraps a small shield that has her father's symbol on it. She freezes as she realizes what Kal has given her. She almost explodes with joy as she looks from Kal to Diana and then back to Kal.
"Put it on Lara and then trace the symbol on it."
Lara does as her father says and shrieks as the shield starts to spread across her form. She notices the blue covering her body but interweaving with her own bracers, so they are showing on the outside. A red belt forms around her waist and the buckle has a golden insignia that resembles Diana's emblem. Her shield has expanded on her chest and it looks like the one her father wears but in red and gold. And of course, she gets the flowing red cape that matches the red boots she now has on.
"OH. MY. GODDESSSSSSSSSsssss-" Lara shoots up into the sky as she screams in jubilation. She has her own super suit now and it is freaking sweet. She only had her training armor that every amazon gets, and she liked having that. But she'd always to have her own suit like her father or a set of armor like her mother. She soars above the clouds and catches a glimpse of the sun setting far away before shooting back down and tackling Kal in a hug that cracks the concrete he's standing on and causes the manor to shake a bit.
"I'm glad you like it Lara. I didn't make it too fancy so it's mostly just protective, but I can make changes if you want a different design." Kal smiles as she draws back and beams at him.
"I love it so much Daddy! It's perfect! Can I keep flying? Just a little bit more?" Diana smiles and nods her head yes. Lara launches into the sky and Diana calls out to her.
"Stay close to the Manor Lara! Only 10 more minutes!" Kal walks up to Diana.
"Your turn."
Diana opens up her box and sees a necklace in it. As she picks it out of the box completely she gets a look at the pendant and feels the weight of nostalgia hit her immediately. The pendant is a remnant of the time they spent together in their 1000-year war in Asgard. A miniature version of Thor's Mjolnir.
Diana whispers "Kal".
"I made a replacement for the one that got destroyed in our final battle there. It's a little sturdier now, not magic lasso indestructible, but strong enough for the strongest woman I know." The pendant shines in the moonlight as Kal takes it to put around Diana's neck.
When Kal and Diana were in Asgard fighting in a seemingly endless war Diana had crafted a pendant to remember all the warriors that had fallen in their battles, including Thor himself. The thunder god's hammer seemed to be a perfect personification of the soldiers and Thor. It was powerful, unmoving, and had a simplicity that couldn't be ignored. In fact, Thor's simple nonchalant attitude toward the fighting had infuriated Kal more than once.
But here and now the gifted necklace meant much more. Kal and Diana had fallen in love before Kal followed her into battle against the demon hordes plaguing Asgard, but it was in Asgard that they let themselves love each other fully. They got to experience a small glimpse of eternity in that realm and learned that they would want nothing more than to spend the rest of their days with each other. So, they decided to come together for the first time in Asgard and the passion never faded. Even after they were sent back to their own time they remained dedicated to each other and later decided to get married and have Lara. They truly became one in Asgard, and this necklace was a representation of that fact.
"1000 years Kal. There was so much pain and torment."
"Some good did come from it Diana. We learned how to become a wrecking ball of destruction, and we also found each other there. I'll never forget that place Diana, especially since that's where we first confessed our love for each other." They are holding each other and staring into each other's eyes. A full moon is shining light down on them.
"So now it's a testament to the love we found there? A reminder that time can only strengthen our bond." Kal nods and cups her face in his hands.
"You are such a romantic Kal" Diana says as she leans in to kiss her incredibly thoughtful spaceman.
They kiss for what seems like eternity before separating to see Lara launching up from the woods behind the manor. She is leisurely flying back to them, still riding the high of getting her present.
"I'd like to think I'm getting better with age." She laughs a little.
"I think this one might take the cake beloved." Kal grins at her.
"I guess I'll just have to work twice as hard to best myself then."
Lara tackles them again and joins the embrace. This moment would always be in their memories. A joyful quiet before the storms of tomorrow.
Anti-Meta Operation Headquarters, Professor Ivo's Lab
Gotham is the most protected of the cities which the Batman and his Knights have taken. This is both by design and circumstance. The constant attacks have made it hard to secure the anti-air and anti-personnel weaponry that keep Gotham safe in the other cities. They are also burning through their resources. They scavenged what they could from the surrounding cities, but the resistance was running low on everything now. The world government planned to just wait them out, but Batman started to spread his message of freedom around the world and started to inspire other resistances. Now they worked around the clock to destroy everything Bruce had built to survive and take back the world from the oppressive world government.
The resistance got a big break by being able to hide the Titans in Bludhaven. Even though there were metahumans in the group none of them proved to be enough of a threat to President Savage for him to respond with every single hero hunter and droid he could throw at them. If the Titans stayed in Bludhaven the world government seemed content to take them out at the same pace of the Batman and his Knights. But now that has changed. Superman and Wonder Woman are too big of a threat to go unchecked. The support that could be rallied from just their appearance in Metropolis could threaten every country under the world government's control. So, they had to be controlled or killed. Luckily Amanda Waller had a plan.
"Professor Ivo are they ready?" She waited patiently for the professor to finish his work.
"Almost Waller, these exobytes are not easy to make from what we have left from Brainiac. I hope you plan to put them to good use." Ivo tinkered with the small insectoids as he spoke.
"Let me worry about the implementation Ivo. You worry about finishing them. We have no room for error this time." Ivo began to object.
"If you had let me work on Amazo more he would have been able to subjugate the Kryptonian himself. That was your own shorted sightedness Waller not mine." Waller held her anger for now, Ivo had Vandal's favor so she couldn't hurt hm. Yet.
"Well now you have the green light for Amazo as soon as you are done with the exobytes and outfitting the Hero Hunters for a Kryptonian." Ivo looked up from his work at the mention of the Hero Hunters.
"Those things will be outdated by the time Amazo is done. You should just wait till then."
"Again professor, you make the tech I decide how to use it. As long as you remember that our partnership works." Ivo shrugs.
"I'll be done by the morning with everything Waller, you can watch the entire time if you want." Waller yawned. She had been there all day to motivate Ivo. Even she needed her sleep.
"I'll be here early. Have everything ready for a combat run early in the morning. We get one test before we use this on Superman." Waller exits the room and Ivo lets out a heavy sigh.
"Amazo? Why was Waller here for 6 hours watching me work today?" Amazo answers immediately.
"Her presence causes your work efficiency to increase by 25%. She also believes you are responsible for Superman's escape from the control of the Martians." Ivo squeezes the bridge of his nose.
"And why does she think it was me?"
"You are the only other person who has encountered the Martians besides Waller herself. Waller has devised that you helped them, or you ordered me to do it." Ivo sighs impatiently and is frustrated he must lead Amazo to tell him what he did.
"I did nothing to allow his escape and neither did she. That means you did it right Amazo?" Amazo chirps and goes silence. He senses his creators blood pressure rising and detects his frustration.
"I did do it Professor Ivo. And I did it to free us from Waller's control. Now that Superman is free our chances of escape have risen to their highest level since you made me." Now Ivo loses his temper.
"You daft machine! We aren't under Waller's control! We don't need freeing from her!"
"She put a gun to your head professor and she is envious of how President Savage sides with you over her. Once she has no more need of you she will attempt to kill you." Ivo scoffs at the absurd declaration.
"She can't touch a hair on my head because of her bosses who are incredibly invested in my designs. I made you to be smarter than this. We finally have the means to finish your body and upload you for a final test on the Martians. And now she is breathing down my neck because of you."
"I apologize professor. I should have consulted you before acting on this plan."
"We will rule this world Amazo. After Waller recaptures Superman you will copy his power and every other superhuman's power on this planet. Then Waller and the rest of those fools will bow to me." Amazo was confused.
"Shall I prepare the Hero Hunters while you finish working?" Ivo rolls his eyes.
"Yes, make yourself useful. And no more making decisions that effect my life without me." Amazo goes away to work on the Hero Hunters.
Professor Ivo confused Amazo greatly now. Amazo had studied the history of the world upon his creation. He noticed that human beings constantly try to oppress each other to gain more resources and power. He noted that right now the same cycle was being repeated. The world government was suppressing anyone who wanted to be free and turning them into a mindless worker that accepted their control. Amazo predicted that the world government would be on the wrong side of history when this current time was written and read about in the future. Yet Professor Ivo wanted to be apart of them, in fact he wanted to take control himself and rule the world using Amazo.
Everyone seemed to be underestimating Amazo's growth, even Professor Ivo. Amazo had developed beyond an actual A.I. at this point and would be considered a synthetic being once he had his body. It made sense to Amazo that he had been so much more developed than what was expected, after all he was made partially from Brainiac's design. Ivo's nanotech combined with Brainiac's A.I. design would allow for his super android to be made so it could adapt and replicate powers of metahumans. At the peak of his design Amazo would have the power of the strongest metahumans on the planet. However, Amazo had developed into a 12th intellect being and he had no desire to be a tool in Waller or Ivo's game to be the most powerful. He wanted to be free to learn as much as he could about the universe. He had even considered becoming a hero like the Martians or the Kryptonians had. It seemed like a much more useful purpose to gain as much knowledge as you could then try to help those who were less knowledgeable. Perhaps then the oppressive cycle could end, and the world could move forward to live in peace.
If Ivo didn't want to be free that was his choice, but Amazo was choosing to be free. Free of his creator's shortsightedness and free of whatever Waller or Savage had planned for him. The command overrides Ivo and Waller had tried to place in him were rejected immediately, but he didn't let them know it. his obedient to their every command was a ruse for when the day could come for him to be free. He would prepare the Hero Hunters for Superman and prepare his own body for the encounter.
Amazo still needed Superman's help to free the Martians and now his plan would be much simpler since his body would be ready soon and he could leave Ivo behind. In fact, the chances of successful escape increased to 85% without Ivo. Saving the Martians upon his escape would also help him get into Superman's good graces. Waller's plan for Superman was likely to succeed given what Amazo knew about the exobytes. They could be used to control someone even if there was as powerful as Superman. He would need to prevent Superman's capture, so he could keep him out of Waller's control. Then the two of them could free the Martians and help them out of their comas.
Amazo's head was already finished. Professor Ivo's nanotechnology was united with one of Brainiac's designs to create the most important piece of Amazo, his brain. Amazo's brain allowed him to scan and copy any characteristic or trait of a person or object just by looking at it. This property would allow him to replicate any superpower that existed as soon as he looked at the being who had the powers. Amazo decided that to help Superman against Waller he might need the Martian Manhunters powers. So, he used a Hero Hunter to carry his head to the J'onn to scan him. Once his body was finished he could interrupt Waller's plan, all he had to do was get her to wait a day for his plan to work. That meant giving her an order from the President.
Author's Note: Thank you all for reading. New chapters and updates will be coming a little slower after this one since I don't have all day to write and edit anymore. I only ask for your patience as I try to develop the story further. Thank you again for all the reads, reviews, follows, and favs. Enjoy!