Chapter 9

Epilogue

Dick Grayson, Nightwing, panted heavily as he quietly moved across rooftops and between buildings in Bludhaven. In his job, he usually had to be quiet, but now he was being especially cautious. Batman had announced recently that Superman had been arrested for trying to absolve a criminal of their misdeeds, but Nightwing didn't believe it. He had known Clark for years, there was no way that Superman would suddenly turn against his friends. Bruce had taught Dick to be a detective, and right now Dick had deduced that Bruce was the one that had turned on Clark. Dick had always been against Bruce going down this path, but he realized that he wouldn't be able to talk Bruce out of this, not when Bruce was convinced that he was doing the right thing. He also didn't like his chances of fighting Bruce, especially when he had most of the Justice League backing him. Still, he had to try, so now he was on his way to one of his secret armories in Bludhaven to gear up to challenge Bruce.

He arrived inside his base and froze as he saw a familiar face inside the room, sitting on his couch. "Jason?" Dick asked. Jason Todd nodded at him and responded, "Call me Red Hood." As he said it, Jason gestured at a red helmet lying on the table next to where he sat. Nightwing nodded uncertainly and moved to his weapons rack, beginning to place his weapons and devices in a large duffel bag. "Well, it's great to see you alive. Sorry if you expected me to be more surprised, but honestly I've seen weirder in past years. Now, if you'll excuse me, we can continue this conversation later. I have a job to do." Jason stood up and grabbed his helmet, asking, "You're preparing to fight Bruce?" Dick froze and looked at him. He narrowed his eyes and answered, "Yes. I don't want to, but I have to. Bruce has finally lost it. What happened to Gotham must've finally broken him. I have to take him down before he gets even worse, crosses more lines that he doesn't want to." Jason placed the helmet on his head and said, "See, that's the thing, Dick. Bruce knows exactly what he's doing. That's why he wants you neutralized."

Dick jumped up and backwards as Jason drew two pistols from inside his leather jacket and fired at Nightwing. Dick tipped a table onto its side as he flew through the air, then landed behind it. He then kicked the table at Jason, but before it could hit him, a small figure jumped into the room and kicked the table aside before drawing a sword off his back. Dick looked at the figure in recognition before more pain crossed his face. "Damian…" "My father can't have you using his old ideology against him, and certainly not his emotions!" Damian yelled at his friend and mentor. "Don't you guys get it?" Dick asked them desperately. "Bruce doesn't want to hurt people! If the Bruce we knew were here, he would be begging us to stop him! I mean, come on! Jason is using guns! Bruce despises guns!" Suddenly, a powerful jolt of electricity shot through Dick's body, causing him to fall to the ground. Looking up, he saw the mask of Red Robin appear above him, AKA Tim Drake. "We all lost people in Gotham, Dick. Bruce knows that one day you'll see things as they are. You're just not ready yet, and we are. Don't worry, you'll be in good company. Barbara, Clark, Kate, and other friendly faces. One day you'll all see." Dick clenched his teeth through the pain and gasped out, "Don't hold your breath."

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J'onn J'onzz was a master of disguise. As a shapeshifter, it just came naturally to him. The part that wasn't easy was lying. J'onn's JL communicator beeped at him insistently for the hundredth time, and again he tried to ignore it. Just then, the door opened to the cafe he was currently at, the bell making a pleasant sound. J'onn listened to the mind of the one that had just entered and sighed. He sent out a mental order to all others in the cafe, ordering the humans to leave, all except for the newly arrived Bruce Wayne. Once all the other people had left the building, their jobs and meals completely forgotten for the moment, J'onn turned to face Bruce as the billionaire sat down next to him, and shifted into his usual human form as John Jones. "J'onn," Bruce started casually, "you haven't been picking up our calls, and I'm sorry to find out that you've been intentionally ignoring us." J'onn looked at him and noted, "You speak of 'us', as though you mean a collective. Do you mean the Justice League? You are not quite so united as you may think. Almost every one of them has concerns about Superman's arrest."

Bruce stood up and walked behind the counter to pour himself a coffee. "So long as their concerns don't become dissension, they are well within their rights to feel such. I myself never wanted this to happen, but Clark forced our hand. And before you ask, no, I'm not going to reveal his identity. He has a life, and Superman lost his way, not Clark Kent. While Superman is incarcerated, Clark Kent is currently enjoying a remote cruise, courtesy of Wayne Enterprises, due to a favor that Bruce Wayne owed him. The length of his vacation is indefinite. His wife wasn't able to join him on the cruise, but she's making regular calls and will have weekly visits." J'onn took the cup of coffee that Bruce offered him and shook his head. "Always have everything planned out, don't you?" Bruce shrugged modestly and responded, "Well, I try. That's how this world will be saved." "Bruce, I must say that I'm rather wary about this venture of yours," Manhunter admitted. "Bruce took a sip of his own coffee and nodded in understanding. "I understand, J'onn. Your planet was overtaken, your people forced to live in fear by enemies that they couldn't hope to fight. But understand that if they simply fear us, they will no longer have to fear anything else. War will be eradicated. Violence and corruption will never again threaten innocent lives. Terrorists will never dare to strike."

Understanding what Bruce was referencing, J'onn looked at him with sympathy and said, "What Joker did wasn't your fault, Bruce." Bruce glared back at him and said, "Yes it was. I trained endlessly so that what Joker did to me couldn't happen, and it was never enough. As strong as my mind is, strong enough to keep even you out if I want, it couldn't stop that drug from making me kill one of my best friends. I sliced open my friend's neck, J'onn. I electrocuted him and threw him off a building. And even if I couldn't have stopped Joker then, how many other chances did I have to stop him in the past? At least hundreds. And I won't make that mistake again. No one else will suffer because I wouldn't do what needed to be done, because I held myself above certain measures. J'onn sensed something more to Bruce's argument, so he looked into Bruce's mind before recoiling in shock. "Batman… the Joker… What did you…?" "Joker got less than he deserved," Bruce answered back, "and you will tell no one about what you saw in my mind, Manhunter." Bruce then stood up and firmly glared at J'onn. "Now, I expect you back on the Watchtower for the next meeting, or no more using your powers. You can stay on this planet, but if you use your powers, you'll be fighting alongside us, or else you'll no longer be welcome. Either you fight with us, or you're against us." J'onn was affronted to hear Bruce speak to him in this way, but when he opened his mouth to protest, Bruce turned back to him with a red glow in his eyes, and J'onn fell silent as Bruce walked out of the cafe.

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Batman went to Star City. Green Arrow and Black Canary stood together and declared that they would not follow Bruce if he was going to try to take over the world. He fought them both, and though Black Canary's scream caused him great pain in his new superhuman ears, Batman didn't even need his powers to defeat the two of them.

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Batman went to Atlantis and Aquaman pledged that he would stand by the Justice League as he always had in the past. Then Atlantis waged war against the surface world for polluting the oceans and endangering sea life. Batman ordered Arthur to cease hostilities against the surface world, but Aquaman refused, so the Justice League tore Atlantis out of the ocean and carried it to the Sahara Desert. When Batman gave the order, Martian Manhunter refused to be part of it and left the JL. Little did he know, Batman had covered his body in remote-activated nanites that would set his entire body on fire if he gave the order. Bruce prayed that J'onn would never make him use them.

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As the Earth falls quiet, Batman goes into space and spends weeks off-world, floating in front of the sun to increase his strength. Meanwhile, Apokolips attacks Earth. Before anyone even knows what has happened, the vast armies of parademons covering the planet are gone, and ash rains from the sky. Mere seconds after the invasion of earth begins, a Boom Tube opens in Darkseid's throne room and he watches in astonishment as Batman flies in, his eyes glowing red and Darkseid's son Kalibak held in his hand by the throat. Batman tosses Kalibak at Darkseid's feet and orders the God of Evil to stay away from Earth. Darkseid doesn't take the threat well, but for now at least, he agrees.

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The Guardians of the Universe hear that Bruce Wayne has forcefully seized control on Earth, but they are conflicted. Batman is technically still just a human that granted himself Kryptonian physiology. They do not know if they are obligated to stop him as he is not technically an alien. For now, they decide to wait. They have four Green Lanterns assigned to protect Earth's sector, all of them among their best, none of whom have reported any sort of evil emerging on Earth. If something did go wrong, the Guardians would surely hear of it. Besides, they feel obligated to give Batman the benefit of the doubt after he helped to capture most of the Sinestro Corps for them, including Sinestro himself. Perhaps a man like Bruce Wayne possessing such incredible power was what the universe needed.

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Years later, all government has been dissolved. Dick still refuses to change his ways, but Bruce doesn't give up. He can't give up. Alfred joined Dick in prison years ago, going there by choice although Bruce begged him to reconsider. Now Alfred and Dick take care of each other, along with any other members of the Bat-family that didn't follow Bruce, including Barbara, though Bruce had worked with Ray Palmer and finally managed to correct Barbara's spine. He had also worked with Jefferson Pierce to remove the radiation from the remains of Gotham, and Bruce was overseeing the construction of New Gotham. It would be all that he had ever dreamed for his city, the days filled with smiles and the nights no longer broken open by the regular sound of a gunshot.

Batman himself was rarely seen by anyone other than the Justice League. The League themselves still stood for hope (mostly), but Batman had become impossibly feared. No one knew how, but everyone was well aware that Batman had played a major role in destroying all governments around the globe. For the most part, despite revealing his true identity to the public, he had actually faded even further into legends and superstition over the years to the point that few people even believed that he was still around. Still, no one dared to cause any trouble, or else they could just suddenly vanish. Darkness became nearly synonymous with fear itself.

One man sought to save the day, however. A shadowy figure snuck into the Justice League's luxury prison, the one reserved specifically for the old friends of the JL, or "The Fallen Heroes" as they were often known. They made their way past room after room until they finally came to a lone cell at the end of a long hallway. When they opened the door to the room, the man in the cell stood and looked at them in shock. "Lex?" Kal-El whispered to his old friend. Lex Luthor smiled and moved to the panel controlling Superman's cell. "It's been a while, Superman," Lex commented as he worked to unlock the cell. "I don't have time to explain, but it's good to see you again. You may be the only one that can stand against-" Lex broke off as his head was shoved forward into the cell's glass wall hard enough to slightly crack the reinforced glass. As Lex's unconscious body fell to the ground, he revealed his attacker, a tall man in a full-body protective suit with a mask designed to look like a bat. "No, he can't, Mr. Luthor," Batman said.

Clark rushed forward in concern and placed his hands on the wall of his cell, looking down at Lex, but Batman just said, "He's fine, Clark, just unconscious for a while. I can hear his heartbeat." Clark looked up at Bruce and was only slightly surprised to see him wearing a new suit. He was, however, surprised to see that the suit was a mixture of Bruce's and his own superhero uniforms. It had a red cowl that even covered the lower face, and Bruce had returned to using the white eyes instead of red. He still wore a yellow utility belt at his waist over black pants, but now his chest was covered in a dark blue. The arms were black and had the claws along the forearms, and he now wore a red cape with the pointed ends, but the symbol drew his attention most. On Bruce's chest was Clark's Kryptonian family crest, but the middle of the "S" had been replaced with a bat-symbol that merged with the rest of the shape. (A/N: Like the fused look from Batman/Superman World's Finest Issue #4 with a red cape.) Clark looked Bruce over and admitted, "The suit looks good. Did you come here just to say hello?"

Bruce reached up and removed his helmet from the rest of his suit with a hiss, and they looked at each other face to face. "I found something, Clark," Bruce said. "If you still refuse to help me, I've managed to synthesize a form of Kryptonite that will permanently remove your powers. It's a painless procedure, and then you can go back to your wife and daughter." Clark's eyes drained of light, and then he asked, "How are they?" Bruce tucked his helmet under his arm as he responded, "Lois is fine. Just missing you. Your daughter is wonderful, she loves my visits. She was ecstatic, getting to see you a few weeks ago. She's started to exhibit some of your powers, so I gave her a bracelet that emits a small amount of red solar radiation onto her." Clark looked at Bruce with anger. "My daughter gets powers and you take them away from her to preserve your order?!" Bruce looked back at Clark and responded, "As I just mentioned, I could've permanently taken her powers, but I didn't. I just stopped them from flowing uncontrollably from a five-year old girl after she almost killed her mother with heat vision."

Hearing this, Clark calmed down and said, "Thank you." Bruce nodded and added, "Besides, she could be a big help to the Justice League one day. We could always use another Kryptonian." Clark ignored Bruce discussing indoctrinating his daughter and instead focused on Bruce's hidden proposal. He shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, Bruce. I can't join you again. What the Justice League is now… It's not what I signed up for." Bruce sighed but nodded like he'd expected that answer. "And you wouldn't consider wearing a red-solar ankle monitor?" Bruce asked. Clark smiled and sat down on a chair in his cell. "I think we both know that it wouldn't hold me for long." Bruce smiled back and put his helmet back on. "All right, Clark. I'll get the gold K in here as soon as I can, then I'll send you back to your family. You've been in here long enough." Kal nodded sadly and watched Bruce walk away. "I wish you luck with Diana, Bruce," Clark called after him. Batman stopped and responded, "And you with Lois and your daughter, Clark. One more thing; Do you think the world is better this way? Is it really safer? Was it worth it?" Clark looked after him and said, "You want the honest truth?" Bruce nodded, and Clark continued, "Honestly, I don't know if it's better. I don't know if it's safer. But I will never believe that it was worth it." Bruce nodded sadly and walked away as two soldiers stepped inside to carry Lex away to place him in his own cell.

A/N: Okay, so as I was writing, I discovered the problem with writing this sort of AU story, but I made a promise to finish the story and decided to follow through. Anyway, the problem is this: I could not create a viable challenge for Batman. I tried to, I really did, but as I researched Batman's plans and possessions, I realized that if Batman stopped holding back, nothing can stop him. Superman did indeed give Batman platinum kryptonite, the chance to permanently give Batman Kryptonian powers, but he turned it down. If Batman stops holding back, there are few that would challenge him, even fewer that could actually do it, and I wasn't kidding when I mentioned that he doesn't need powers to cripple the world, only to defeat some superpowered threats. Unfortunately, Batman has always seen himself as a monster in the darkness, and if he fell like Injustice Superman did, I am convinced that he would be even worse, because he wouldn't even hesitate from the beginning. Unlike Superman, Batman doesn't have to worry that he'll no longer stand for hope if he chooses this path.