Arrow Time Heart
Krypton
The present makes perspective difficult. The immediacy of the moment makes everything seem better or the greatest. It tends to discount everything that has gone before. Hyperbole is its stock and trade. How can anything in the past be relevant if now is always the best? If that new song you just heard is the best, why listen to anything that came before? Yet just a bit of perspective shows that you weren't the first to feel this way. Imagine being a teenager in the 1930's and Benny Goodman's Orchestra comes on the radio and plays "Sing, Sing, Sing" for the first time or being at the Newport Folk Festival when Bob Dylan introduced "Blowing in the Wind." At those moments, the people present thought those were the greatest and best things ever.
As time passed and those same people gained a little perspective they slowly realized that just because something happens now, doesn't necessarily make it the best. What it does is help make their view of the world more layered. It lets them see a little deeper into what has gone before and appreciate it too. It helps expand understanding.
As Clark fell up through time, he got to see Kryptonian society grow and evolve. What had only been the bare facts now took on a larger and more complex meaning. It showed him that what he thought he knew of his people wasn't as simple as he'd believed. He watched as they grew and evolved. He saw the seeds of their greatest take root, yet also the seeds of their destruction. They became a dynamic, advanced race, yet as they evolved they slowly became entrenched in their beliefs. They turned away from the outside worlds. Orthodoxy settled over their society and with time rigidity. They began to cling to how things used to be, harkening back to a perceived Golden Era in their history that never really existed.
When he'd first stepped back into time and realized he was on Krypton, Clark had the boyish, romantic fantasy that if he could time it right he could help his father Jor-El convince the wider society that tragedy could be averted. He imagined himself speaking to the council to back up his father's findings and helping to turn the tide towards evacuation. As he slipped in and out of time, Clark gained a perspective on his original homeworld that showed the folly of these notions. Jor-El wasn't the first or the only Kryptonian that saw what was coming. Clark realized how foolish it probably was to think so. It was like believing Christopher Columbus was the first person to think the world wasn't flat. Other voices sang the same tune, but they were ignored as well. Kryptonian society became increasingly xenophobic and believed the other worlds had nothing to offer them. They believed they were the greatest civilization that ever was. The caste system that ruled society became more rigid and they lost the dynamism that had made their society flourish.
As he fell towards their end, the sad truth began to sink in that they were a doomed society. Under the red sun, Clark had no superpowers, so he had to just watch as they advanced towards their extinction. These beautiful, intelligent and dynamic people seemed to want to cling to the illusion that things would never change. They lacked the perspective Clark was sadly gaining. They believed the now was the pinnacle of their society and didn't realize that the very forces they rejected were what made them great. Openness to new ideas and the change that comes with it had been lost to them. They stopped evolving as the society and when they did that it signaled their eventual decline.
In the middle of all these bitter truths, there was a ray of sweetness. In this last fall into time on Krypton, Clark achieved the impossible. He got one of his heart's desire, he saw his parents, Lara and Jor-El. They weren't his parents yet; in fact they were younger than he was. They were at that first stage in their relationship when love began to bloom. He wanted nothing more than to interact with them, but knew he couldn't. He watched from afar as their courtship proceeded. They were nothing like he imagined them. This wasn't the brilliant, elder scientist that Clark knew from the Fortress; this was a young man in love with a beautiful young woman.
His mother was just so lovely and full of life. Clark found himself having a bit of a crush on her too. One look at her and he understood everything his father was feeling. Watching them Clark saw what she saw in his father. Serious, career mind, yet in love with her and trying to win her over. Clark smiled as he watched his father try every romantic trick in the book. Lara rebuffed him at first, but didn't completely reject him. Clark could see her young suitor fascinated her, but she wasn't going to make it easy for him. She had her pick of the best sons from the best families, yet none of them seemed to catch her fancy the way Jor-El did.
As time began to pull him back out of the stream, Clark got to see their first kiss. His last image before he slipped away was the two of them in each other's arms. He was a product of the love they were both just starting to realize. He could do nothing to stop what was going to happen, but he hoped the years they would spend together would always have the love he saw in their eyes that last time.
Slipping back out of time, he realized he'd just been given a great gift, perspective. Not just on his people, but on his parents as well. They weren't just those iconic statues in the Fortress anymore, but real, living breathing people. His part of their lives was such a small, but important piece. They had hopes and dreams, most of which didn't involve him, yet he was the product of many. His understanding of them shifted and he saw them with more depth and realized they had so many more layers than just being his parents. He gained perspective and was richer for it.
Japan
The small Hanamachi or Geisha town sat on the outskirts of the city. Night had fallen and a mist lingered over everything. Small paper lanterns gently swayed in the wind casting shadows that flickered over the thin walls. The dulcet tones of elaborate metal wind chimes and the soft fragrance of jasmine in the air just added to the other world quality of this place. It harkened back to the different age where words like honor and duty superseded all others.
The word in the forefront of Masami's mind was vengeance. Tonight was the culmination of everything she'd been training for all these years. Her whole life had been dedicated to this moment and the vengeance she would bring down on the House of Kijuro Makuda. The dragon spirit she was bonded to felt this also and practically pulsed under the light dark outfit she as wearing. Its thirst for blood seemed to grow with each confrontation and it wormed its way deeper inside of her and strengthened its hold. It silently urged her own, anxious for the taste of blood on her steel.
Silently she moved among the buildings and slipped past the guards. She didn't want to deal with them if she didn't have to, preferring to let them live as witnesses to what occurred here tonight. This frustrated the dragon spirit, but it bided its time, knowing there could always be a change in plans. A soft fog began to roll in and added to her cover. The guards were Kijuro's best and were on a hair trigger, but they were outclassed before the night even started. They, like their boss didn't understand this was a different type of fight then they were used to. They put their faith in weapons and firepower, which had served them so well in the past. Against a rival gang or competitor this strategy worked fine, but against a lone, determined and skilled assassin like Masami all their firepower meant nothing.
As she slipped past more guards and reached the inner buildings, Masami couldn't help thinking of the words of the man, the Bat man. They had been playing over and over in her mind since the other night. Rie Saga, the guiding spirit in Masami's life had told her not to think of what he'd said and concentrate on vengeance. Masami tried to do this, but his words seemed to have burrowed into her mind and wouldn't let go. Was there another way? Killing Kijuro would satisfy the honor debt but what did that really mean? Her parents were dead and nothing could change that. Every waking moment since then had been spent either training for our seeking vengeance. The finale was now at hand, but Masami strangely found no satisfaction in it. Kijuro was a man without honor. When she was a child he seemed like evil personified, but now she understood he was just a man, a gangster and thug. No one would weep at his death and others were already moving in to take his place.
As she moved closer to his room, she began to wonder if vengeance was enough anymore. Yes, her parents murder would be avenged, but that was never the legacy they would have wanted. Was what she had become really honoring their memory? If you kill one snake and a hundred pop up in its place, what have your truly accomplished?
Yet she wanted this, wanted to see this man die. In his reckless, callous way he had destroyed and taken everything away from her. Her world had been torn apart in front of her young eyes because Kijuro Makuda couldn't have what he wanted. He would die for what he'd done to her, but in the larger picture would it really solve anything? There were other gangsters, just as ruthless as he and his murder would only aid them in their deadly struggle with each other. Was there another way, she wondered? Could she turn personal vengeance into something larger so what she had experienced never happened to anyone else? Was that the other way the Bat man spoke of?
No, she told herself, he seeks only to distract you and keep you from your goal. Steeling her nerves, Masami moved slowly through the narrow streets and into the main corridors. She knew this place like the back of her hand and could navigate it blindfolded. Her opponents knew the basic outline of the place, but she knew every detail. They would not stop her. Kijuro would hold up in the inner most building. Masami took out one of the guards silently and slowly drew her sword. The edge sliced through the paper walls and she was able to slip inside undetected. The moment had arrived.
Like a ghost she stepped through the thin paper walls and into the room. The light was low, but she could see Kijuro sitting against the wall behind a low table. Masami could feel the dragon begin to move; yet something felt off about the situation. Kijuro should have seen her by now, yet he made no move, not even to shout for help. A trap flashed through her mind and she held up her sword ready for any attack. A moment passed and then another candle was lit on the table. The Bat man.
"Hello, Masami,' he said to her. He somehow remained in the shadows, yet she could make out his eyes looking at her. Kijuro sat tied up and gagged, his eyes nervously looking back and forth between the two.
"This is not your place,' she said.
"I'm sorry, but I'm making it my place,' he replied.
"You would protect him? Him?" She asked in outrage.
"No, but I won't let you kill him either,' Batman replied. "I know what you're feeling, but there is another way, Masami."
"Honor dictates he dies."
"If this is all about honor, then it's already over,' Batman stated. "What honor is there in killing a helpless man? Do you truly believe that is what your parents want? He is just a symptom of something larger, Masami. The names change, but they are always there. The true fight is about justice for all, even people like him."
"You speak of justice?" She asked bitterly. "Where was the justice when he had my parents gunned down in the street? Where was the justice when he made the women of this village slaves to him? There is no justice as long as monsters like him are allowed to walk free."
"Then everything is lost,' Batman quietly replied. "You cannot have a functioning society if there is no law. It's what the Enlightenment and modernity is all about. After thousands of years of feudal and divine decree, men finally understood that there can be no freedom or justice is there isn't a set of laws that apply to everyone equally. Justice is blind, but it's not deaf. It hears the cries of those that are suffering regardless of their race, creed, color, or status. If you kill him now you throw all that away and we go back to the rule of the lynch mob."
"Men like him buy or intimidate those in power and the law doesn't touch them,' she snapped. "They are above the law and everyone knows it."
"They are not above my law,' he replied. "Vengeance is a hollow victory in the end and solves nothing. I've learned that the hard way and it's why I choice another way. I remind men like him that it is just an illusion. They aren't above the law. No one is above the law. The system may be flawed, but that just means we have to fight harder to make it work."
"Words, they come so easy from your lips,' she said, slowly sliding to the side trying to get between him and Kijuro.
"Not easy,' he replied, moving with her. "If it were easy there wouldn't be a need for people like me. Or you, Masami. It's the harder road to travel; I'm not going to lie to you. It's the choice we all must face sooner or later. Are we going to be like him or do we stand up for what's right? That's the choice you have to make right now, Masami. So what is it going to be?"
They stood looking at each other. She hesitated. Bruce had done the extraordinary thing of putting himself all out there to her. She was like looking in a mirror and he desperately wanted to get through. Her hesitance seemed like a good sign. In a perfect world perhaps he had reached her and her path was about to change. But Bruce knew better than anyone, it wasn't a perfect world. So as all his pleas still hung in the air, the door to the room open and one of the guards stepped inside. Everything changed in that moment. Whatever had caused Masami to pause was gone. With a flick of her wrist she fired one of the needles from her hair at the guard and killed him instantly. Kijuro took the opportunity to rock back and tip over the table in front of him. The candles felt and when they made contact with the walls the room was engulfed in flames.
Masami fired the other needle at Kijuro, but Batman lunged at her and knocked her aim off. The razor sharp needle embedded in the wall and Kijuro quickly used it to cut through the plastic ties on his hands. Scrambling madly, he tore through one of the walls shouting for his guards even as the fire spread. Batman wrestled Masami to the ground, but the dragon spirit made its presences known. It lunged at Batman, knocking him across the room. By the time he was on his feet, Masami was gone in pursuit of Kijuro. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the guards rushing towards him. They opened fire, spraying the room with bullets. Dodging and rolling for cover, while avoiding the flames, Batman started his pursuit of Masami. She had a head start and he just hoped he could reach her before it was too late.
New Orleans
The last two jumps had been filled with heartache and tears for Hippolyta. She had been given her greatest desire only to have to give it up. She still had all the memories of her younger self, yet that offered little comfort. She didn't want to just remember Diana's first word or first step, she wanted to be there to see them. It was such a strange quirk of time that she remembered everything that happened, but she watching as if it were an old super 8 movie of a trip she forgot she took. Hippolyta had never felt so alone and isolated.
The jumps had left her to live in the man's world just waiting for the next so she might finally reach her own time. Most of her days were spent quietly staying out of sight. She couldn't even be Wonder Woman because it would soon be the time when Diana finally entered the world. This left her with little else but to think on her life and what was important to her. Her perspective on so many things had changed since the beginning of this journey. Beliefs she had held all her life were now called into question. When she did finally get back, she knew she couldn't return to how things were before. It seemed change was fated to happen one way or another.
Today though was not a time for those thoughts. Hippolyta sat in the small, simple apartment she had rented and watched the television set. This was a special day, it was the day Diana announced herself to the world. Every channel seemed to have wall-to-wall coverage. There was almost a palpable excitement that came through the screen as they and the crowd waited for her to make her appearance. Hippolyta felt on pins and needles as she waited for the first sight of her beloved daughter. And then there she was.
Tears began to roll down Hippolyta's cheeks as she watched Diana address the crowd. A mother's pride swelled within her and she watched how poised and confident she was. It was truly seeing her daughter in a new light. Hippolyta remembered this day, but now she was seeing it as one of the outside world. Before she had always hated this moment when Diana finally left the island, but now she understood how much bigger it was than just a mother's desire not to lose a daughter.
As she watched her daughter and listened to the reports, Hippolyta began to understand that Diana was something more than just another hero, she was a symbol. In this new age of heroes, Diana stood among the elite from the moment she stepped out of the Embassy. Hippolyta fully understood that Diana no longer belong to her or even the Amazons, but to the world as a whole. She was a symbol of hope and perhaps a better tomorrow.
Many tears were shed, but she watched all of it, not wanting to miss a moment of her daughter's triumph.
Japan
Masami caught up with Kijuro just on the edge of the town. In the distance the sound of fire trucks could be heard. He wasn't hard to track as he splashed desperately, trying to flee.
"Kijuro Makuda!" She shouted at him. "There is nowhere left to run!"
He stopped and turned towards her. A sword flashed in his hand against the moonlight. A look of fear briefly moved over his features but then was replaced with anger.
"Assassin,' he snarled. "You have not the honor to face me one on one! You use surprise as a weapon, but that is over."
He raised his swords towards her and she followed suit. He made the first move, a mad rush, hacking and slashing at her. She easily sidestepped him, slicing her sword across his back and drawing first blood. Again and again he attacked, but it each time it had the same result. By the time Batman reached them, Kijuro was slumped in the water bleeding badly. Masami stood over him with her sword pointed at his throat.
"Finish it,' Kijuro rasped. "Blood for blood."
"Masami, no!" Batman shouted, She briefly glanced at him and then turned back to Kijuro. The dragon spirit was writhed over her skin as it anticipated the kill.
"Finish it!" Kijuro screamed. "You wanted vengeance, then take it! My life for your parents, do it!"
"Blood for blood," the dragon spirit whispered to her.
"You don't have to Masami," Batman pleaded with her.
She stood as still as a statue, her eyes boring into Kijuro. Her sword started to move towards his through, but then she pulled back.
"No." She quietly said.
"What?" Kijuro screamed in surprise.
"Your life is not worth my parents,' she replied. "There is no honor in killing you. It would only shame their memory. The honor belongs with them, not in your death."
She lowered her sword and started to turn away. Kijuro couldn't believe what she was saying and his shock turned to rage. With one desperate lunge he thrust his sword into her back.
"NO!" Batman screamed in horror and rushed towards her. Her eyes opened wide and seemed unfocused. The dragon spirit was no longer restrained and lashed out at Kijuro, tearing a huge gash in his chest. He fell back coughing blood, as the water around him turned red. Batman caught Masami as she slumped forward. The sword had struck deep and true.
"Stay with me, stay with me,' he implored her. Her eyes focused for a moment and looked at him. Her lips moved, but no sound came and then she slipped away.
"She was just weak,' Kijuro weakly said, the life pouring out of him now. He didn't see Rie Saga step out of the shadows behind him. There was a cold, murderous look in her eyes. She raised a sword and in one violent stroke severed his head from his body. Blood gushed out and the two parts dropped into the shallow liquid. Gunfire erupted and Rie Saga, the grand dowager was cut to pieces.
"NO! No more!" Batman screamed and launched himself at the guards. With brutal intensity he took each and everyone one of them out. As the sirens grew nearer, he turned and looked at the night's work. Masami's limp body floated on the water, while Kijuro and Rie were submerged. Slowly he moved over and cradled Masami in his arms. So many emotions tore through him, as he looked down into the young dead eyes.
"Bruce?"
It was Selina. How much time had passed he wasn't even sure. The fire trucks were pulling in to battle the blaze and it was time to go. She gently put her hand on his shoulder as he stood. He looked at Masami once more and then turned to Selina.
"I'm sorry, Bruce,' she whispered, running her fingertips over his lips. He was just about to respond, when the League communicator chimed. He listened for a moment and any trace of emotion disappeared.
"Bruce?"
"There's a crisis in New York, I've got to go."