*** Writer's note : As per a reader's question, this story is now in the early stages of day 6. WW has slightly less than 48 hours until her powers completely run out. ***
"Where am I?" Diana privately wonders. The AWOL Amazon princess finds herself in tight, cramped quarters. Pitch darkness inhibits her sight, but the heroine detects scuffling sounds emanating from close by. She will likely be discovered very soon, a foreboding thought under the circumstances. Wonder Woman remains still while desperately contemplating a viable solution. In so doing, her memories of the previous day begin to take shape. Diana recalls where she is and she knows that an escape will be dicey.
The princess listens patiently and intently as the threatening presence nears her location. She still possesses enough of her heightened Amazon senses to identify the individual through sound and scent. "I'll only get one chance." Diana reasons. "I've got to end this quickly!"
Wonder Woman delicately slides the closet door open a foot and she springs out towards an unsuspecting Batgirl. The Amazon launches a precision right-handed chop to the base of the cowled heroine's neck. Diana expects Babs to slump to the floor unconscious. Alas, Miss Gordon proves too resilient. Batgirl senses the oncoming attack and she rolls with the impact of the blow. Slightly dazed, she spins away from the princess and bounces back to her feet in a defensive posture.
"So, all this time you never were trapped below?" Barbara rhetorically asks as a stalling tactic. She glances beyond Wonder Woman at the far wall of the large master bedroom. "Groan!" she thinks to herself while resisting a frown. "She knew enough to shut that door and close us in here? Circe's playing 'divide and conquer' and unfortunately she's doing a damn good job of it!"
Batgirl is very cognizant of her own limitations when matched in battle against Diana. The princess is the champion of her people not only because of her incredible physical gifts; she augments those strengths with superior skill, discipline, and the intellect to fully maximize her abilities. "Fighting toe-to-toe against Wonder Woman would be futile." Babs reasons while maintaining a brave front. "I'm not ashamed to say 'I need help'. The problem is that I've got to get past her in order to call in the troops."
Making like a basketball point guard, Batgirl feigns a quick maneuver to her right. Instead, she adroitly shifts her weight from her right foot to the other. The heroine surges to her left, accelerating to nearly top speed within two steps. Her fleetness afoot would elude most pursuers, but, as Babs expects, Diana is not duped. Batgirl subtly grasps for her Batarang as the Amazon princess swiftly closes in.
Despite all of Barbara's cleverness, Princess Diana sniffs out her intentions. The Amazon is not distracted by her quarry's deft footwork. She notices the Batarang, but to Babs' astonishment she ignores it. Wonder Woman tackles Batgirl about the waist, driving her upper back and shoulders into a large wooden bedpost. In the process, Diana focuses upon the real threat. The princess targets Barbara's left hand, which had extracted a mini-explosive from the utility belt while the right had reached for the more visible Batarang.
Barbara Gordon's heart races upon being disarmed. Presuming the evil Circe controls Wonder Woman's actions, Batgirl understandably fears for her life. Instinctively she fights back by throwing a left elbow. It lands solidly against the right jaw of the princess. The caped heroine follows with a roundhouse kick. Although Diana reacts to the attack, the blow connects with enough force against the chin to knock the Amazon to the floor.
Wonder Woman immediately recovers, but the damage has already been done. Blood trickles from her lower lip, further reinforcing the harsh reality. There is nothing Diana can do. The speed of thought is just too great to overcome. Batgirl now recognizes the Amazon's severely diminished power levels. The terrible consequence is immediate and utter madness.
Minus her rationality, Batgirl is easily subdued by the princess. "How many more Circe?" a melancholy Diana mutters. "How many more?"
*****
An anxious Diana slips the ebon cowl over her head and face, allowing the accompanying titian wig to dangle over her shoulders. Standing six feet in height, the Amazon princess is a full six inches taller than Babs Gordon. As a result, the Batgirl costume is a painfully uncomfortable fit. Her toes cram into boots three sizes too small. To squeeze into the body suit, the heroine deliberately tears the fabric in several, non-compromising locations. Fortunately the large blue cape cloaks nearly her entire form, thus making the disguise fairly passable.
"My apologies Barbara." Diana whispers as she clothes her unconscious friend in a bathrobe. For Babs' personal health and safety, Wonder Woman wants her to be found soon. It is imperative, however, that the Amazon flee Wayne Manor before she is discovered. To do so, she must emerge from what has thus far been the safe haven of the master bedroom.
As she gently lays Ms. Gordon down on the bed, Diana vaguely recalls her last flickering moments of consciousness from 40 hours earlier. Overwhelmed by the Batman's genetically engineered sleeping gas, the heroine instinctively ascended the steep stairwell and crawled on all fours to the master bedroom prior to passing out. Within its specially constructed walls, her heartbeats were shielded from the superhuman ears of Kal-El.
Wonder Woman knows her Justice League colleagues well. As such, she is quite familiar with the Batman's rigorous methods and his relentless war against crime. Bruce Wayne has studied the martial arts. He has mastered various mental and physical disciplines, each of which provide him with the potential means to overcome challenges. The Batman typically maximizes his time like no one else. Given the outrageous demands of his work, Bruce has learned to gain useful rest whenever the opportunity presents itself. He can doze for minutes at a time while on stakeout, yet his finely attuned hearing will snap him back to full attention upon the slightest hint of activity. Even the Batman needs his share of full, uninterrupted REM sleep however. This proves difficult due to his compulsive restlessness. As such, the hero has equipped his master bedroom with soundproofing to ensure that his proper repose is achieved.
Diana nudges the bedroom door open a crack and peers out into the upper floor hallway. With no one in sight, she cautiously proceeds towards the staircase. The Amazon detects subtle noises emanating from below, but her hearing is no longer acute enough to distinguish them from this distance. Upon reaching the main level, she realizes that the sounds emanate from the secret entrance to the Batcave. Furthermore, she recognizes their source from the periodic and distinctive grunting of one of her colleagues.
"Hawkman must be trying to clear the passageway to the Batcave." Wonder Woman theorizes. Although relieved that he seems to be the lone JLA member on hand, the princess shudders at the prospect of a confrontation. "Katar must be distraught over Shayera's condition." Diana reasons. "I have no desire to face the fury of his wrath. In my weakened state, he could unwittingly kill me!"
Wonder Woman quietly slips past the study, unseen by Hawkman. She heads for the lower parking garage where, in answer to her prayers, she finds Batgirl's motorcycle. Diana manages a very slight grin when she notices the maximum possible velocity at the far right of the speedometer. "200 miles per hour?!" the heroine privately marvels. "May Athena bless you, Babs! Hopefully, I won't need all that speed, but it's sure nice have it!"
Diana guides the cycle out of the garage and coasts down a short hill before starting up the engine. As she rides down the long driveway, Hawkman emerges from the front door of the manor. Clearly the hero is confused that Batgirl is leaving without any explanation. Remaining composed, the princess emphatically gestures towards the Bat-Signal which ominously paints the clouds above the west-end of Gotham City. Diana continues to accelerate, hoping that Katar concludes that she is simply responding to the latest call for assistance from Gotham's finest.
The Amazon speeds down the dark, nearly-deserted state highway leading towards the city. Although she is seriously tempted, Diana does not look back to see if the Thanagarian is in pursuit. "Act as Batgirl would." Diana tells herself. "Babs wouldn't look over her shoulder, because she wouldn't expect Hawkman to follow. His duty lies at Wayne Manor while hers is apparently in downtown Gotham. If he is suspicious, Katar should get the message that Batgirl can handle her mission on her own."
The miles pile up and the skyscrapers of Gotham City ever draw closer. Hawkman has undoubtedly remained behind, but Wonder Woman is still plenty worried. "It won't be long before they find Barbara. Once that happens, the JLA will be scouring Gotham City for me. I've got to find cover ASAP!"
*****
"Try to relax, Katar. You can't help Hawkgirl and the others if you allow anger to cloud your judgment." Hawkman hears Superman's words of advice. He realizes the Kryptonian makes sense, but now it is his own guilt which fuels his frustration.
"I know Superman, but this fiasco is my fault." Hawkman grimly responds. "She was right in my sights, but I just stood by and let her leave." Katar proceeds to recount the recent events as he understands them. He recalls the critical moment where, having heard the motorcycle, he spotted 'Batgirl' leaving the scene. "It didn't seem right that she would drive off without a word. I initially dismissed it, I suppose, because the Batman has been known to do this kind of annoying thing. It wasn't until ten minutes or so later that I decided to look around; shortly thereafter I discovered the real Batgirl, afflicted with the same accursed madness as Shayera and Barry."
The commotion surrounding the now conscious and hopelessly crazed Barbara Gordon awakens Alfred. The butler has know Ms. Gordon for some time and he is deeply troubled by her plight. Alfred is still quite fatigued, but he is resolute in his insistence upon tending to Barbara. "Her secret identity is as precious to her as Master Bruce's is to him." Pennyworth reasons. "I will look into obtaining discrete, professional aid for her, but in the meantime she shall safely remain here."
With Alfred caring for the properly restrained heroine, the trio of Justice Leaguers refocuses its attention. Wonder Woman must be tracked down. The top priority, however, is freeing the Batman from the damaged Batcave and addressing any injuries he may have sustained in his encounter with Diana.
Superman leads the way down the impeded stairway, picking up where Hawkman had left off. Clark works swiftly while maintaining proper caution. The further he tunnels the more optimistic he becomes. The Kryptonian recognizes that the volume of structural damage to the cave is not nearly as extensive as they had all presumed. As such, there is little risk of causing additional collapse while clearing away the rubble.
Within minutes, the Justice Leaguers reach the Batcave. The Batman and Joker are both in plain view, exhausted and hungry, with the same ten feet still separating the two hated enemies. Bruce calls out to his comrades while the villain manages a slight chuckle. "Looks like I win, Batsie!" Joker rants. "It's Superham AND his costumed friends. I told you he was afraid to face me alone!"
In assessing the situation, the Martian Martian telepathically probes the underground complex. This is standard procedure for J'onn, whose formidable mental abilities are both effective and timesaving. He quickly verifies that the Batman and the Joker are the only ones present. J'onn casually scans the Joker's thoughts in the hope of determining Circe's plans. Once the two minds connect, the hero suffers what appears to be a seizure. His green-skinned form writhes in inexplicable pain. His limbs tense and his eyes open wide in horror. J'onn keels over as Kal-El and Katar respond to his distress.
As Superman reaches his fallen colleague, the Martian Manhunter begins to come to after having only momentarily blacked out. There is barbaric rage is Jonn's eyes as he viciously attacks the man of steel. In a wild frenzy, J'onn smashes Clark through some damaged electronic equipment. Shrapnel scatters throughout the cavern as the two powerful figures wrestle within the mini-crater caused by their initial impact. Hawkman attempts to pry the insane Martian off of Kal, but even his considerable Thanagarian strength can not budge the brutal assailant.
From a distance of only fifteen feet, the Joker watches the melee with fascination. Typically, the infamous killer tends to cower from meta-human violence, but this proves to be an exception. The villain is captivated by the spectacle, as though he were a moth drawn to a deadly flame. "It's madness!" he proclaims in awe. The Joker hobbles a couple steps closer to the combatants. Moments earlier, he had felt the Martian's thoughts touch his own. Although the Joker does not fully comprehend the dynamics in play, he recognizes the basic truth. Knowledge of Wonder Woman's diminishing powers triggers insanity. "What beautiful madness!" he cackles.
Unseen by the preoccupied harlequin, the Batman staggers to his feet and approaches from behind. Bruce is unaware of the devastating revelation the Joker is about to unleash; instead he sees a pathetic, but nonetheless defenseless man in imminent physical danger. As such, the caped crusader decks his nemesis with a single left cross, rendering him unconscious. Fighting his own fatigue, the Batman carries the criminal out of the line of fire.
Meanwhile, J'onn J'onnz relinquishes his hold upon Kal and redirects his fury towards Hawkman. The Thanagarian eludes a wild flailing assault and counterattacks with his mace. J'onn shrugs off the blow as if it were merely a mosquito bite. The mad Justice Leaguer slams Katar against the wall of the cave, but Superman pulls J'onn off of him before any serious injury is inflicted.
With his great strength buoyed by hysteria and the absence of fear, the Martian Manhunter is a tremendous danger to society. Fortunately his irrationality effectively limits the scope of his powers. He is motivated solely by primitive rage; therefore his mental abilities are unavailable to him. He can not teleport, change his appearance or pass through solid objects.
Superman and Hawkman freely hash out a battle plan knowing J'onn is no condition to comprehend their language. The heroes agree that their afflicted ally must be contained in the Batcave; therefore extreme action is required. While Katar spars with Martian Manhunter, Kal uses super suction breath to siphon gasoline from the Batmobile. Knowing fire is a Martian's Achilles heel, Superman douses him and ignites the fluid with his heat vision. J'onn wails in pain. Hawkman clobbers his weakened ally, knocking him out, and Clark immediately snuffs the flames.
"He'll recover ... at least physically." the Batman ominously rules upon quick examination. A somber silence ensues for a few moments within the dimly lit Batcave. "This has gone on long enough." Superman sternly declares. "Regardless of the risk to Diana, we must find her and put an end to this lunacy!"
"Where am I?" Diana privately wonders. The AWOL Amazon princess finds herself in tight, cramped quarters. Pitch darkness inhibits her sight, but the heroine detects scuffling sounds emanating from close by. She will likely be discovered very soon, a foreboding thought under the circumstances. Wonder Woman remains still while desperately contemplating a viable solution. In so doing, her memories of the previous day begin to take shape. Diana recalls where she is and she knows that an escape will be dicey.
The princess listens patiently and intently as the threatening presence nears her location. She still possesses enough of her heightened Amazon senses to identify the individual through sound and scent. "I'll only get one chance." Diana reasons. "I've got to end this quickly!"
Wonder Woman delicately slides the closet door open a foot and she springs out towards an unsuspecting Batgirl. The Amazon launches a precision right-handed chop to the base of the cowled heroine's neck. Diana expects Babs to slump to the floor unconscious. Alas, Miss Gordon proves too resilient. Batgirl senses the oncoming attack and she rolls with the impact of the blow. Slightly dazed, she spins away from the princess and bounces back to her feet in a defensive posture.
"So, all this time you never were trapped below?" Barbara rhetorically asks as a stalling tactic. She glances beyond Wonder Woman at the far wall of the large master bedroom. "Groan!" she thinks to herself while resisting a frown. "She knew enough to shut that door and close us in here? Circe's playing 'divide and conquer' and unfortunately she's doing a damn good job of it!"
Batgirl is very cognizant of her own limitations when matched in battle against Diana. The princess is the champion of her people not only because of her incredible physical gifts; she augments those strengths with superior skill, discipline, and the intellect to fully maximize her abilities. "Fighting toe-to-toe against Wonder Woman would be futile." Babs reasons while maintaining a brave front. "I'm not ashamed to say 'I need help'. The problem is that I've got to get past her in order to call in the troops."
Making like a basketball point guard, Batgirl feigns a quick maneuver to her right. Instead, she adroitly shifts her weight from her right foot to the other. The heroine surges to her left, accelerating to nearly top speed within two steps. Her fleetness afoot would elude most pursuers, but, as Babs expects, Diana is not duped. Batgirl subtly grasps for her Batarang as the Amazon princess swiftly closes in.
Despite all of Barbara's cleverness, Princess Diana sniffs out her intentions. The Amazon is not distracted by her quarry's deft footwork. She notices the Batarang, but to Babs' astonishment she ignores it. Wonder Woman tackles Batgirl about the waist, driving her upper back and shoulders into a large wooden bedpost. In the process, Diana focuses upon the real threat. The princess targets Barbara's left hand, which had extracted a mini-explosive from the utility belt while the right had reached for the more visible Batarang.
Barbara Gordon's heart races upon being disarmed. Presuming the evil Circe controls Wonder Woman's actions, Batgirl understandably fears for her life. Instinctively she fights back by throwing a left elbow. It lands solidly against the right jaw of the princess. The caped heroine follows with a roundhouse kick. Although Diana reacts to the attack, the blow connects with enough force against the chin to knock the Amazon to the floor.
Wonder Woman immediately recovers, but the damage has already been done. Blood trickles from her lower lip, further reinforcing the harsh reality. There is nothing Diana can do. The speed of thought is just too great to overcome. Batgirl now recognizes the Amazon's severely diminished power levels. The terrible consequence is immediate and utter madness.
Minus her rationality, Batgirl is easily subdued by the princess. "How many more Circe?" a melancholy Diana mutters. "How many more?"
*****
An anxious Diana slips the ebon cowl over her head and face, allowing the accompanying titian wig to dangle over her shoulders. Standing six feet in height, the Amazon princess is a full six inches taller than Babs Gordon. As a result, the Batgirl costume is a painfully uncomfortable fit. Her toes cram into boots three sizes too small. To squeeze into the body suit, the heroine deliberately tears the fabric in several, non-compromising locations. Fortunately the large blue cape cloaks nearly her entire form, thus making the disguise fairly passable.
"My apologies Barbara." Diana whispers as she clothes her unconscious friend in a bathrobe. For Babs' personal health and safety, Wonder Woman wants her to be found soon. It is imperative, however, that the Amazon flee Wayne Manor before she is discovered. To do so, she must emerge from what has thus far been the safe haven of the master bedroom.
As she gently lays Ms. Gordon down on the bed, Diana vaguely recalls her last flickering moments of consciousness from 40 hours earlier. Overwhelmed by the Batman's genetically engineered sleeping gas, the heroine instinctively ascended the steep stairwell and crawled on all fours to the master bedroom prior to passing out. Within its specially constructed walls, her heartbeats were shielded from the superhuman ears of Kal-El.
Wonder Woman knows her Justice League colleagues well. As such, she is quite familiar with the Batman's rigorous methods and his relentless war against crime. Bruce Wayne has studied the martial arts. He has mastered various mental and physical disciplines, each of which provide him with the potential means to overcome challenges. The Batman typically maximizes his time like no one else. Given the outrageous demands of his work, Bruce has learned to gain useful rest whenever the opportunity presents itself. He can doze for minutes at a time while on stakeout, yet his finely attuned hearing will snap him back to full attention upon the slightest hint of activity. Even the Batman needs his share of full, uninterrupted REM sleep however. This proves difficult due to his compulsive restlessness. As such, the hero has equipped his master bedroom with soundproofing to ensure that his proper repose is achieved.
Diana nudges the bedroom door open a crack and peers out into the upper floor hallway. With no one in sight, she cautiously proceeds towards the staircase. The Amazon detects subtle noises emanating from below, but her hearing is no longer acute enough to distinguish them from this distance. Upon reaching the main level, she realizes that the sounds emanate from the secret entrance to the Batcave. Furthermore, she recognizes their source from the periodic and distinctive grunting of one of her colleagues.
"Hawkman must be trying to clear the passageway to the Batcave." Wonder Woman theorizes. Although relieved that he seems to be the lone JLA member on hand, the princess shudders at the prospect of a confrontation. "Katar must be distraught over Shayera's condition." Diana reasons. "I have no desire to face the fury of his wrath. In my weakened state, he could unwittingly kill me!"
Wonder Woman quietly slips past the study, unseen by Hawkman. She heads for the lower parking garage where, in answer to her prayers, she finds Batgirl's motorcycle. Diana manages a very slight grin when she notices the maximum possible velocity at the far right of the speedometer. "200 miles per hour?!" the heroine privately marvels. "May Athena bless you, Babs! Hopefully, I won't need all that speed, but it's sure nice have it!"
Diana guides the cycle out of the garage and coasts down a short hill before starting up the engine. As she rides down the long driveway, Hawkman emerges from the front door of the manor. Clearly the hero is confused that Batgirl is leaving without any explanation. Remaining composed, the princess emphatically gestures towards the Bat-Signal which ominously paints the clouds above the west-end of Gotham City. Diana continues to accelerate, hoping that Katar concludes that she is simply responding to the latest call for assistance from Gotham's finest.
The Amazon speeds down the dark, nearly-deserted state highway leading towards the city. Although she is seriously tempted, Diana does not look back to see if the Thanagarian is in pursuit. "Act as Batgirl would." Diana tells herself. "Babs wouldn't look over her shoulder, because she wouldn't expect Hawkman to follow. His duty lies at Wayne Manor while hers is apparently in downtown Gotham. If he is suspicious, Katar should get the message that Batgirl can handle her mission on her own."
The miles pile up and the skyscrapers of Gotham City ever draw closer. Hawkman has undoubtedly remained behind, but Wonder Woman is still plenty worried. "It won't be long before they find Barbara. Once that happens, the JLA will be scouring Gotham City for me. I've got to find cover ASAP!"
*****
"Try to relax, Katar. You can't help Hawkgirl and the others if you allow anger to cloud your judgment." Hawkman hears Superman's words of advice. He realizes the Kryptonian makes sense, but now it is his own guilt which fuels his frustration.
"I know Superman, but this fiasco is my fault." Hawkman grimly responds. "She was right in my sights, but I just stood by and let her leave." Katar proceeds to recount the recent events as he understands them. He recalls the critical moment where, having heard the motorcycle, he spotted 'Batgirl' leaving the scene. "It didn't seem right that she would drive off without a word. I initially dismissed it, I suppose, because the Batman has been known to do this kind of annoying thing. It wasn't until ten minutes or so later that I decided to look around; shortly thereafter I discovered the real Batgirl, afflicted with the same accursed madness as Shayera and Barry."
The commotion surrounding the now conscious and hopelessly crazed Barbara Gordon awakens Alfred. The butler has know Ms. Gordon for some time and he is deeply troubled by her plight. Alfred is still quite fatigued, but he is resolute in his insistence upon tending to Barbara. "Her secret identity is as precious to her as Master Bruce's is to him." Pennyworth reasons. "I will look into obtaining discrete, professional aid for her, but in the meantime she shall safely remain here."
With Alfred caring for the properly restrained heroine, the trio of Justice Leaguers refocuses its attention. Wonder Woman must be tracked down. The top priority, however, is freeing the Batman from the damaged Batcave and addressing any injuries he may have sustained in his encounter with Diana.
Superman leads the way down the impeded stairway, picking up where Hawkman had left off. Clark works swiftly while maintaining proper caution. The further he tunnels the more optimistic he becomes. The Kryptonian recognizes that the volume of structural damage to the cave is not nearly as extensive as they had all presumed. As such, there is little risk of causing additional collapse while clearing away the rubble.
Within minutes, the Justice Leaguers reach the Batcave. The Batman and Joker are both in plain view, exhausted and hungry, with the same ten feet still separating the two hated enemies. Bruce calls out to his comrades while the villain manages a slight chuckle. "Looks like I win, Batsie!" Joker rants. "It's Superham AND his costumed friends. I told you he was afraid to face me alone!"
In assessing the situation, the Martian Martian telepathically probes the underground complex. This is standard procedure for J'onn, whose formidable mental abilities are both effective and timesaving. He quickly verifies that the Batman and the Joker are the only ones present. J'onn casually scans the Joker's thoughts in the hope of determining Circe's plans. Once the two minds connect, the hero suffers what appears to be a seizure. His green-skinned form writhes in inexplicable pain. His limbs tense and his eyes open wide in horror. J'onn keels over as Kal-El and Katar respond to his distress.
As Superman reaches his fallen colleague, the Martian Manhunter begins to come to after having only momentarily blacked out. There is barbaric rage is Jonn's eyes as he viciously attacks the man of steel. In a wild frenzy, J'onn smashes Clark through some damaged electronic equipment. Shrapnel scatters throughout the cavern as the two powerful figures wrestle within the mini-crater caused by their initial impact. Hawkman attempts to pry the insane Martian off of Kal, but even his considerable Thanagarian strength can not budge the brutal assailant.
From a distance of only fifteen feet, the Joker watches the melee with fascination. Typically, the infamous killer tends to cower from meta-human violence, but this proves to be an exception. The villain is captivated by the spectacle, as though he were a moth drawn to a deadly flame. "It's madness!" he proclaims in awe. The Joker hobbles a couple steps closer to the combatants. Moments earlier, he had felt the Martian's thoughts touch his own. Although the Joker does not fully comprehend the dynamics in play, he recognizes the basic truth. Knowledge of Wonder Woman's diminishing powers triggers insanity. "What beautiful madness!" he cackles.
Unseen by the preoccupied harlequin, the Batman staggers to his feet and approaches from behind. Bruce is unaware of the devastating revelation the Joker is about to unleash; instead he sees a pathetic, but nonetheless defenseless man in imminent physical danger. As such, the caped crusader decks his nemesis with a single left cross, rendering him unconscious. Fighting his own fatigue, the Batman carries the criminal out of the line of fire.
Meanwhile, J'onn J'onnz relinquishes his hold upon Kal and redirects his fury towards Hawkman. The Thanagarian eludes a wild flailing assault and counterattacks with his mace. J'onn shrugs off the blow as if it were merely a mosquito bite. The mad Justice Leaguer slams Katar against the wall of the cave, but Superman pulls J'onn off of him before any serious injury is inflicted.
With his great strength buoyed by hysteria and the absence of fear, the Martian Manhunter is a tremendous danger to society. Fortunately his irrationality effectively limits the scope of his powers. He is motivated solely by primitive rage; therefore his mental abilities are unavailable to him. He can not teleport, change his appearance or pass through solid objects.
Superman and Hawkman freely hash out a battle plan knowing J'onn is no condition to comprehend their language. The heroes agree that their afflicted ally must be contained in the Batcave; therefore extreme action is required. While Katar spars with Martian Manhunter, Kal uses super suction breath to siphon gasoline from the Batmobile. Knowing fire is a Martian's Achilles heel, Superman douses him and ignites the fluid with his heat vision. J'onn wails in pain. Hawkman clobbers his weakened ally, knocking him out, and Clark immediately snuffs the flames.
"He'll recover ... at least physically." the Batman ominously rules upon quick examination. A somber silence ensues for a few moments within the dimly lit Batcave. "This has gone on long enough." Superman sternly declares. "Regardless of the risk to Diana, we must find her and put an end to this lunacy!"
