Chapter 3: Tears of Victory

Exiting the boomtube, the four of us freeze in our tracks. We arrive directly in the center of what used to be Metropolis Olympic Stadium. The stadium is decimated, leaving much of the structure lying in ruins. There appears to be none of Darkseid's minions in the area, however I'm puzzled because we were to arrive near Darkseid's stronghold.

"So where's the front door?" I hear Nightwing ask.

"Darkseid's complex is protected by an energy field that protects against any form of teleportation", Batman says. "I had to calculate a safe point until I figure out an alternate course of action."

Batgirl and I look at each other as we notice the subtle irregularity in the space around us. She must have that odd taste in her mouth as well.

"Eww, what is up with the air here?" she asks. "Can't you guys taste that?"

Batman looks at us as Nightwing notices the taste in his mouth as well.

"We're in the middle of a radioactive neutral zone", he says.

Before any of us can react, he speaks again.

"Don't worry. Your mother boxes are protecting you. The taste in your mouth is the decontaminate at work."

Batman reaches into his belt and retrieves a small box. After pressing a button, the box emits a three-dimensional holographic depiction of what downtown Metropolis looks like now. I'm amazed as bright red outlines of vehicles and soldiers of Darkseid's army are also included in the image. Batman must have sensors placed around the city to give him this information.

"This is a real time hologram of the compound in the center of Metropolis", Batman says as he adjusts the image.

"And how are we seeing this?" Batgirl asks.

"I installed four transmitters in the surrounding areas well before we formed the Justice League. I have been working on this mapping device afterward."

"Oh…" Batgirl says with a hint of sarcasm.

"As I was saying, the compound is surrounded by swarms of Darkseid's forces. This map shows that the structure itself is perfectly defended against any head-on attack that the four of us could make. We can't even burrow from the underground up as the foundation is perfectly designed."

"From above?" Nightwing asks

"No", Batman answers. "Who knows what kind of anti-aerial weaponry they'll have. It's too risky. Also we wouldn't last long with a direct attack. We need the element of surprise"

Batgirl gives off a huff of air as she stares at the hologram some more.

"Then what…?"

Batman stands quietly for a moment, obviously changing his plan.

"We'll go here", Batman says as the map changes again. "This is a Wayne Enterprises storage facility two miles south of Darkseid's complex. According to this image, the facility is relatively unscathed. I have a special bunker inside the building for any…unexpected trips to Metropolis."

The hologram shows that the area surrounding the storage facility is patrolled by a large number of Darkseid's army.

"Why is it important that we reach this facility?" I ask.

We all look up from the map to look at Batman again.

"We have to get inside Darkseid's compound", he starts. "Unfortunately we don't have the luxury of being able to break in by any means, so we have to get them to open the doors."

Nightwing and Batgirl's body language show a great deal of alarm, and impatience. From what I can tell, Nightwing is the worse when it comes to lack of patience. He stands with his arms folded like a child being disciplined, almost like how Flash used to.

"How do we do that, send them a telegram?" Nightwing sighs.

The man is almost smiling again.

"Something like that…"

We have avoided countless troops as we trekked through of miles and miles of debris in what used to be the great city of Metropolis. Batman is leading us to his old storage facility that doubled as a base whenever he operated in Metropolis. We've done a tremendous job avoiding confrontations with any of Darkseid's troops. We cut it close a few times as the debris under our feet nearly gave away our positions. I chose not to fly because the others could not do the same without their jet-propulsion suits drawing attention with the noise.

Batman had yet to develop a silent mode for them.

It would also be a risk if a naked eye were to spot me if I carried everyone myself. I easily could, but patience is vital. Batman feels that our probability for success would be higher by traveling on foot.

Thankfully, our Mother Boxes have protected us from any radar or sensors placed around the area. Batman quickly showed us that we don't even appear on his three dimensional map.

After nearly two hours of stealth movement, we arrive at the facility. We stop on a collapsed building just south of our destination, the rubble giving us a high ground to observe the area. The facility itself seems to be unattended, but there is a platoon of troops just east of it. From my count, there are probably three dozen ground troops accompanied by three large tanks.

We find a spot to lay low to avoid being spotted.

"This is like a bad movie…" I hear Nightwing complain.

"I need to get inside", Batman says. "The three of you stay here, I'm going d…"

As Batman speaks to us, an explosion occurs on the ground. The three tanks that once stood were now engulfed in flames as the number of ground soldiers had diminished greatly.

"I think someone beat us here", Batgirl says.

I look down to see nothing around the area, but I do see Batman in the corner of my eye giving hand signals. He holds up his arm with his hand wide open then motions it down. The three of us nod as we move to spread away from our sitting position. We look back to him as he leaps down from his spot onto sturdy ground. We follow him in our own respective positions, landing on sturdy ground as well.

"Switch to infrared sensors", I hear Batman say in my ear.

I blink my eyes rapidly four times to activate the infrared in the contact lenses Batman supplied me. The infrared is showing me nothing in the area, just the heat from the fire surrounding the area.

"Move for the back of the building", I hear Batman again.

Deactivating my lenses, I make for the back of the building, hovering over the ground rather than walking to avoid causing any additional noise. The others are trained in the art of stealth, but we amazons are not the most silent of combatants.

I arrive to see the three already huddled together with Batman bringing up the holographic map.

"I saw nothing", I quietly say as I join them.

"Neither did we", Nightwing says.

The map is now indicating the destruction that just occurred in the area, even showing that none of the ground troops survived the blasts.

"The blast couldn't have killed these soldiers", Batman says as he points at certain bodies shown on the map. "Something or someone is out there."

"You are right, Batman."

We all look up to see a figure hovering above us.

"And I'm pleased to see the four of you have managed to survive the initial attack."

The voice is recognized as the figure comes into view.

"J'onn!" I say as an appropriate feeling of joy overcomes me.

J'onn lands on the ground, the four of us surround him as Batman is the first to greet him. However his joy is not present as he draws his sword and quickly brings it to J'onn's throat.

"How long have you been following us?" Batman asks.

"What are you doing?" I ask as I jump to J'onn's side.

I am not surprised to see both Nightwing and Batgirl draw their swords as well, the look on their faces show as little trust as Batman's does.

"How long?" Batman says even firmer as J'onn keeps his composure.

I look from Batman back to J'onn.

"Since you arrived inside of the stadium", J'onn says.

I draw my sword as well and place it to his back. I have questions of my own.

"How do we know you are who you say you are?" I demand as I understand Batman's concern.

Batman and I push our blades a bit harder onto J'onn, causing him to give off a familiar growl. However, that growl is foreign to the J'onn we know. Before I could plunge my blade through his back as I recognize him to be the fraud that he is, Batman quickly brings his sword down and cuts off one of the imposter's legs.

It falls to the ground as it morphs into its true form. The imposter has been revealed as one of the clones created in Superman's likeness. Batman quickly reaches into his pouch and reveals a small blade that he supplied to each one of us, a blade that injects a form of liquid Kryptonite. He punctures it into the shoulder blade of the clone, the Kryptonite allowing an easy penetration.

The clone's cries of agony are cut short as it visually begins to lose energy. Its screaming is replaced by moaning as Batman searches it. Batman finds a transmitter in its ear similar to ours.

"This is one of ours", he says. "They're tracking us."

The fire from the explosion continues to blaze as the four of us assume an immediate defensive stance. If we were being tracked, then we could be surrounded by now.

"Move", Batman firmly says.

He takes the lead and fires a grapple to the top of the building, Nightwing and Batgirl doing the same. They rise from the ground where I remain to ensure they reach the roof without incident. The three reach the roof and I fly up to meet them, I see Batman with his map already out scanning the area.

"So now what?" Nightwing says looking over the ledge of the roof.

"Tell me this place has one of those Bond villain doomsday weapons", Barbara says looking down the sinkhole on the roof.

Batman answers by silently motioning the three of us to his side. We crouch around him as he shuts off his map. He then brings his hands up and begins to use American Sign Language to communicate with Nightwing and Batgirl. They nod and remove the communicators from their ears and give them to him. They turn to me and I do the same, although I'm only used to spelling out letters individually with sign language.

Batman takes his out as well and checks to make sure all of them are still activated, then he turns for that large sinkhole and leaps down into the building.

Nightwing, Batgirl and I sit silently, neither one of us willing to admit yet that we're trying to figure out what Batman is trying to do.

I never did get used to how Batman succeeded in being a valuable member of the Justice League, if not most valuable, without having any special powers. The myth of his abilities is losing its credibility the more I am around Dick and Barbara.

We sit on the roof of a heavily damaged building in the middle of a city destroyed and ruled by an overlord from another planet. Yet, these two individuals no older than the Flash sit calmly, focused on the task at hand. The will in their eyes is only bested by Batman himself. I was right when I told mother he gave these two a belief that anything can be accomplished.

I am a believer as well.

A grapple fires from the hole, landing on the ground next to it. Batman immediately leaps up from within, landing next to us.

"We've got one chance", he quickly and quietly tells us. "I hooked up the communicators to the computer and the signal sources are being bounced around the city, but it won't take them long to figure out the real source. We wait two minutes then we make for the ground. That should clear any direct tracking that has been trailing us."

We arrive within a mile of Darkseid's fortress. It stands higher than any skyscraper that ever stood in Metropolis. It used to be Darkseid's main ship, however it doubled as a base when landed on a foreign planet. Here, it is his home. I can now see the very top of it as we get closer to it. The pollution along with the night hid it very well. The soot in the air mixed with the unforgiving humidity has made every inch of my exposed body filthy.

We stop as a tank with a large number of troops can be seen from a distance. We take refuge behind more rubble, this time from what used to be a post office. Batman looks around the rubble quickly to make sure we were not spotted, and then turns back to us ready to give directions.

We realize he is ready to give more than just directions as he pulls back his cowl. The dirt his face accumulated below his eyes is easily visible as the rest of his face was protected by his cowl, only glistening in sweat. His piercing blue eyes focused, determined, making his scowl tolerable.

Those eyes…

"It's time", he begins. "Everything we've ever trained for, everything that brought us together, everything that we believe. It comes down to this. What I need the three of you to do is cover me so I can get inside the complex. It's too late to save the world we once lived in, but what we can do is show Darkseid that the cost of taking our planet is his life."

We look at him in silence as he reapplies his cowl. However I choose not to remain silent.

"You will not last long by yourself, Bruce", I say to him.

Batman checks his supplies one last time before answering me.

"I only need to be alive long enough to get to Darkseid", he says. "After that, whatever happens…happens."

He told me all of this before. It had been forever since I had last wept, but the tears came easily during our night together. He told me his intentions for tonight, which he did not expect to survive. His main priority was to make sure that both Dick and Barbara survived this. He knew that they would be needed. With everything we have come to grips with over the past couple of weeks, I am not surprised that his two protégés are taking this as well as they are.

"Whatever it takes", Nightwing agrees with him.

Batgirl nods as Bruce re applies his cowl. Batman gives them a relieving nod himself.

"When I do what I have to do, I'll send a signal", he continues. "When you get it, that's when you head back."

Batman rises to his feet, still covered enough by the rubble to not be seen. We all do the same as he approaches Nightwing and Batgirl. He places a hand on each of their shoulders, eventually bringing them in for an embrace. He pulls back looking at Nightwing, who is struggling to keep his trained face showing. Batgirl is far too emotional from everything that has happened to care if she lets herself go. Tears could be seen from her eyes as she embraces Batman one last time.

The three of them whisper to one another, which ends with both Nightwing and Batgirl standing ready to do their duty. Batman then turns to me, walking briskly towards me. Before I can react, he applies his lips to mine.

We stand with our mouths together for a few moments before he backs away from me. His arms disappear under his cape as I am unable to form any words to say to him. He recognizes the difficulty I'm having and softens the look on his face.

"Believe…"

After he says his last word to me, he raises his arm and fires a grapple to the nearest standing building. We look at him as he takes one last look at us, the line already waiting to raise him.

"I love you", he says to the three of us.

With that, he is lifted into the night.

Our eyes stay fixed to sky where Batman disappeared from sight. I bring our attention back to the task at hand. The tank and soldiers are coming closer to our position. The ground begins to shake as the heavy-armored vehicle rumbles across the broken terrain of downtown Metropolis. I unsheathe my sword, still perfectly clean since I last polished it.

I intend to defile its cleanliness by ending the lives of as many of Darkseid's forces as possible.

"Nightwing", I say. "We need that tank."

Without missing a beat, Nightwing swiftly moves from hiding spot to hiding spot that the oncoming troops cannot detect him. His Mother Box should shield him from any sensors in the area. With Batman disabling our communicators, we have taken away any chance of us being tracked.

I watch Nightwing's movements, and they are nothing short of brilliant. Like Batman, no movement is wasted in his approach. His laid back attitude masks his true ability, making him a very formidable adversary. Hera, would I need years of training before I could ever move as fluid as he does.

Nightwing stands behind a slab of concrete as the tank comes within a few meters of him. Batgirl and I ready ourselves to aid him once he engages the target. I see Nightwing look back at us, raising his thumb and then disappearing from sight. The cloaking device Batman installed into their new suits is proving valuable.

Within seconds of Nightwing cloaking himself, we see the first of the troops to fall. Quickly, a second one falls. Their deaths finally have come to the attention of the rest of the troops around. That awareness comes with the death of two more soldiers as the final four raise their weapons. As one barks orders in confusion, another soldier falls. The three finally fall back towards the tank as the top hatch opens up. It remains open as the body of the operator is tossed out of it, landing in front of the troops. They turn to see a single sword that seems to be floating in the air, held by a mirage.

Within a few seconds, shots cold be heard as the final soldiers are claimed by that very sword.

Nightwing uncloaks and we see his sword, as well as himself, covered in the blood of our enemies. He emptily signals us over to him. Batgirl and I come from behind the rubble to quickly meet him. When I arrived next to him, I can see the blank look on his face. This young man has never taken a life, yet the act comes so easy to him, almost as though it were an art. He breathes heavily as I motion to Batgirl to inspect the dead. She herself is somewhat taken aback by the death lying around us.

"We will have no choice but to take more lives", I say to them. "You do not have to agree with your actions, but you will have to perform them if we are to succeed."

Nightwing still stands blankly as the blood continues to drip off of him and his blade. He whips the sword to his side to clean the blade as much as possible, then returns it to his sheathe.

"Let's clear these bodies", he says as he picks up the first of the corpses.

The three of us bury each of the bodies under the surrounding rubble as quickly as possible. We then regroup in front of the tank again, knowing that Batman will be waiting for us to create the diversion.

"Diana, can you drive this?" Nightwing asks. "You just need to drive straight back down the road. Barbara and I will stay cloaked until we engage any more troops. Take these."

He hands me one of the straps around his torso that contained explosives.

"When we get where need to be, fly out and toss these at the largest clump of baddies we see. The explosion should draw enough attention."

I take the strap and place it around my body. Nightwing then motions with his thumb for me to climb inside of the tank. The two jump on the outside of the tank, waiting for me to enter. I fly up and enter though the hatch, closing it behind me.

I forget how inferior minded Darkseid's soldiers can be, this tank is designed very closely to that of an automobile. I find the ignition, turning on the roaring engine. I feel the power that this vehicle possesses, which is nothing like piloting an aircraft though Earth's atmosphere. However, it will do.

My driver's training does not fail me as I am able to turn this tank around and drive toward the opposite direction.

As the demolished pavement below us crumbles from the weight of the tank, I cannot help but to wonder if I should have let him go alone. Perhaps I should have gone instead of him. Even with the strength amplifier his new suit possesses, I am still much stronger than he is. But I know enough that there are tasks that need to be done that only he can perform. I also know that Dick and Barbara would stand less of a chance to survive on their own.

With or without me, chances of survival are low.

I begin to see the bulk of Darkseid's army through the opening of the tank. I do not doubt that they see us as well, knowing that a tank was to return. They should also notice the troops that were once apart of the convoy are no longer around.

I'm am less than fifty yards away from the army, now is the time.

I open the hatch, but before I exit, I say a silent prayer for us and our cause. I then lift into the air with the strap of explosives in my hand. I hear Nightwing's voice telling Batgirl to scatter for cover. I'm identified immediately as ground troops begin to fire at me. I avoid the energy blasts easily as I activate one of the explosives. I hurl the strap at the largest concentration of troops.

To my amazement, the multiple explosions are larger than expected. This should give Bruce the cover that he needs. I draw my sword as the soldiers who survived the blast scatter about. I then see Nightwing and Batgirl appear out of nowhere as they both engage the remaining soldiers.

I admit to myself that there is a small sense of fear within me. My mind is focused on the task at hand. However my heart is focused on Bruce. Our night together was everything I thought it would be and everything I did not know it could be. To offer myself to him as I did was something I never believe myself to be able to do. He respected the nature of my offer, not because I chose to indulge on the physicality two people can enjoy.

Because we both admitted our true feelings for one another: love.

Love, oh Hera…

My love for him can survive this conflict and countless others just like it. Whether we succeed or fail, our love will drive us to our dying breaths. My purpose now is to provide my love with the distraction he needs to succeed in his mission.

I cried to him before I slept when he said he does not expect to survive our mission in either victory or defeat. I wept as though I had already lost him. He reminded me that he had not died just yet by continuing what we had been doing throughout the night. I woke up with a sense of pride for the man whom my heart belongs to. In life or in death, my love and his legacy will live forever.

If he should fall this day, my night with him will be worth every moment I exist from here on.

"Good bye, my love."

I wipe away a lingering tear and move to join Nightwing and Batgirl in battle.

The Batman lifts into the sky as those he loved are left behind on the ground below. Landing on the roof of a nearly demolished building, Batman begins to sprint as he makes his way to the compound of Darkseid.

Batman has always remained ever so cautious with the decisions he makes in his life. Whether it be the decision to avenge the lives of his parents, take in Dick or Tim and train them, or even revealing his identity to those he would call his allies. Batman always managed to keep a perfect handle on where his feelings lie.

However, his life has changed dramatically over the course of two weeks.

His homeworld, his very city, are decimated and controlled by the universal overlord Darkseid. Most of his allies of the Justice League have fallen during this conflict, along with his father figure and the youngest of his partners in Gotham. Even a longtime ally in Superman has fallen to an extant, now an enemy under the thumb of Darkseid.

Batman makes his way from rooftop to rooftop as the last couple of weeks still play out in his head. Barbara and Dick have both stayed alive to this point, fleeing to Themiscrya with himself and Diana.

Diana…

Perhaps the most insignificant overall change to the world at large is his admitted feelings towards her. He always felt there was something between them. The subject even came out in the open once or twice, where he avoided any possible questions or comments fairly well.

But with the current events of his world, any possible distraction Diana could ever cause him was irrelevant.

Now, Batman fights to end the reign of Darkseid. In order to fully succeed, he knows he must take Darkseid's life. To Batman, he is a little surprised that he has been able to accept the idea of taking his life, or any life that comes between them. His disciplined mind prepares him for every possible scenario for success. The necessity of taking lives is too great for any personal objections he may have.

The survival of the human race is at stake. Batman knew that the remaining humans on Earth had little to no chance in surviving the month if Darkseid were to keep his stranglehold on the world. Batman's only hope is to kill him and allow his contingency plan to finish off the rest of his forces.

In his mind, Batman has already won.

The war is over.

The death of Darkseid ensures no one else suffers as Earth has suffered. Batman will let God judge his decision to be Darkseid's judge, jury and executioner. Regardless of what God's view would be towards his actions, Batman has made his decision regardless of what his judgment will be.

Batman never had much faith in the Lord to begin with.

Leaping onto another rooftop, Batman sees two Parademons resting on top of the building. Wasting no time, Batman brings out his sword and swiftly moves in for the kill. As he approaches, the two Parademons turn to him, however very late. With a precision that a master assassin wishes he possessed on his best day, Batman slices the throats of both of them without losing stride. The cuts were so clean that blood failed to stain his sword, allowing him to sheathe it without cleaning it.

The two Parademons fall to the ground as Batman makes for the next rooftop. He now hears the explosion behind him that the others were to make. Batman stops in his path to look over the ledge of the building he now stands on. On the ground, swarms of uncoordinated troops scatter towards the blast area.

"Perfect timing", Batman whispers to himself.

Wasting no further time, Batman turns to continue his sprint. The next few rooftops were supposed to be guarded, but the diversion created by his comrades has caused the entire occupied area of downtown Metropolis to go into a panic. Batman can even hear commanding officers on the ground shout sporadic orders to the poorly undisciplined soldiers.

"Pathetic…"

Batman now arrives on top of the closest standing building to Darkseid's compound.

The distance between them was easily five hundred yards of uneven, open terrain. Batman takes a moment to bring up his map to see how the others were fairing. According to his map, they were holding their own…and then some.

Relieved, Batman returns his map generator to his belt and works on his Mother Box strapped to his right arm. He makes sure that he is still shielded from electronic and telepathic detection before moving on. He also checks the power source of his suit, which is comfortably at ninety-nine percent. He then realizes that the shield that once stood around the complex was no longer activated.

"Good…"

Batman now activates the cloaking device in his suit, rendering him invisible to the naked eye. He leaps off of the building as the light from near-burning fires fail to find him. He hits the ground moving, sprinting across the terrain as countless soldiers march in the opposite direction within a mere hundred yards away.

Batman makes time easily as the uneven earth crumbles underneath each step. The complex gets closer with every heavy breath he takes, also the sounds of a heavy battle continuing in the distance. As he came closer to the complex, he could see a small platoon of soldiers standing guard.

No problem.

Batman leaps into the air as the soldiers on the ground are completely oblivious to his presence. They become aware as each one of them finds themselves on the ground bleeding from large wounds from either their necks or their stomachs.

As one of the soldiers was dying on the ground, Batman reached down for the cardkey to enter the door of the complex. With an ease that aroused a suspicion within him, Batman entered through the door.

As the steal door closed behind him, Batman found himself in a large room that was nearly the size of his cave. Batman's sensors picked up someone flying above him, hovering in place.

"I'm amazed, Bruce. You actually went through with this."

The denigrating voice above him belonged to the man who founded the Justice League along with him.

Superman.

"I know you're there, Bruce", Superman spoke again. "I can hear your breathing."

Superman lowered towards the ground as Batman deactivated the cloaking device. Batman looked into Superman's eyes to see if he could recognize any trace of the man he once knew. He questioned if this were the true Superman or one of the clones developed.

"Are you the real deal?" Batman asked almost mockingly. "Or are you one of the copies?"

Superman smiled and folded his arms. His black cape flowed darker than Batman's ever could.

"Homegrown Kryptonian", Superman answered.

Batman's face returned to his stern, usual look.

"Clark, I know you're under control", Batman began. "It's not the first time Darkseid had you under his control, let me help you fight…"
"Control?" Superman huffed. "You're mistaken Bruce."

Superman gave a look that unsettled Batman greatly.

"What do you mean?" Batman said as a truth was finally revealing itself after so many years.

"I did not come to Earth as an orphan sent away to survive the destruction of Krypton, I came to claim Earth in the name of Krypton."

Batman gave Superman a bewildered look.

"Krypton was not a planet set on discovery and science, Bruce", Superman continued. "We were conquerors."

Batman continued to be confused.

"True, we were very gifted with science and technology, but our main purpose was to obtain planets by force to further the Kryptonian race throughout the galaxy. With our knowledge and abilities, we were destined to rule. I was created by Jor-El, the great scientist who developed Kryptonian infants with the genetic capability to absorb energy from different suns and transfer them into tremendous power."

Batman was left unsettled as Superman smirked.

"It can't be…" Batman says.

"It's true, Bruce", Superman says. "Krypton was once a mighty and feared planet. The great Green Lantern Corps with their bureaucracy even shined us a blind eye. We were good at what we did, Bruce. We even developed a weapon and sent it to the deepest pockets of space to gather data and destroy anything that could pose a threat to us."

"Brainiac…" Batman growled.

Superman smiled.

"After each infant is created, they are sent to distant planets to conquer them as they grow into adulthood."

"Why didn't you destroy us when you had the chance, Clark", Batman scowled.

Superman's tone dropped to a menacing baritone.

"Because a planet that defeated the Kryptonian sent to it decided to attack Krypton and completely destroy it. I was en route to Earth as an emergency abort signal was sent to my pod. The signal also disabled my life support system, causing my pod to crash land on Earth and cursing me amnesia.

"When Darkseid captured me the first time, he was able to return most of my memory. Darkseid knew of my true origin, hoping to turn me into his weapon against his enemies. For a brief time, he succeeded. However, the recall I experienced was only temporary. It took my most recent capture by Darkseid to truly restore my memory."

"I take it one of your fakes is leading Darkseid's army across Europe", Batman said not asking.

"Darkseid's army..?" Superman slowly asked as his arms unfolded.

His bellowing laugh filled the large space the two stood in. Batman felt his stomach turn with what this new-lunatic could be implying. However, Superman's laughter was replaced with a threatening stare as his eyes began to glow.

"I killed that worthless slime the day you disappeared from Gotham, Bruce", Superman said. "You mean MY army."

Superman suddenly fired his heat vision at Batman, who was protected by an energy shield generated by Mother Box. Superman moved quicker than a blink of an eye as his fist connects with the energy field, still able to send Batman flying thirty yards back. Batman easily flipped in the air and landed on his feat, protected from the blow. However, as he turned upright, Superman was in his face again.

"My army is positioned in Metropolis and Gotham, Bruce", Superman said as his hand found its way around Batman's throat. "I was able to simulate my army marching over the world to any satellite attempting to relay information.

"The orders I gave were to wait for you and the others to resurface before we made ANY moves. You were too much of a risk to keep alive as we moved forward with the purging of this planet. The rest of the world is on high military alert as we have completely exterminated all human life in the western hemisphere."

Superman's grip is beginning to weaken the shield around Batman's throat.

"When we've killed the rest of the Justice League, we are going to take this planet", Superman says sounding just like Darkseid.

Batman, in true fashion, will not let Superman have the only words at this moment. He was going to try to use words to bait Superman to do something stupid.

You can take the overlord out of Kansas…

"What's the matter, Clark?" Batman barely could say, but managed to smile. "Can't set up your intergalactic boot camp on Krypton?"

Superman's face went blank for a brief moment before firing into a rage. Superman slammed Batman to the ground as he held his grip around Batman's throat. Superman brought him to his feet, ready to throw another thunderous punch at Batman's stomach.

Batman practiced his next maneuver with some success during his time on Themiscrya, hoping it would transfer into battle. As Superman threw another punch towards him, Batman caught his arm using both the amplified strength from his new suit and the force given off by the energy field from Mother Box.

With success, Batman momentarily matched Superman's strength and twisted his arm around and drove an elbow to the back of his former friend's elbow. Superman screamed in pain as his arm now bent backwards, his elbow severely dislocated. Falling to his knees in pain, Superman clutched at the limp right arm that once was nearly indestructible. Batman was hoping that move would work, also hoped that some of the Kryptonite lined in his suit would help him out as well.

"It's over, Clark", Batman said as he unsheathed his sword and brought it to his side. "Get this army off of Earth NOW, or I'll kill you."

Superman's face tried its best to smirk at Batman as he looked up.

"Do you think death scares me?"

The Kryptonite in Batman's suit was working perfectly as Superman's motor reflexes began to slow considerably. Even the pain from his arm was making him dreary. Batman knelt over and lifted Superman to his feet with his free arm. Batman steadied Superman to his feet as Superman's eyes were beginning to lose focus from Kryptonite.

"I know death doesn't scare you, Clark" Batman said as his hand reached into his belt.

Batman's hand came out with a syringe and plunged the tip of it into the weakened flesh of Superman. Batman pushed down the plunger as Superman's dazed smirk began to fade into a look of horror as she slumped to his knees.

"But I'm hoping this does, old friend."

Since his first days as Gotham's protector, Batman's main weapon against his enemies was fear. Now, his enemies do not believe in the myth of the Batman, nor do they fear him. The man kneeling before him, who he even once called an ally and a friend, was someone who would never fear him.

Batman knows that in order to succeed in gaining what he wants, the methods he has always employed would be needed. And with the help of liquefied Kryptonite and a serum developed by the late Jonathan Crane, Batman now has the power of fear over Superman.

Superman's screams of terror are accompanied by the sounds of his clones bursting through the walls of the empty hall. It appears that the number of Superman clones Batman remembered being has greatly multiplied. Batman now stood in a room as nearly fifty clones hovered around him and Superman, who was still screaming for his life and twirling on the ground.

Batman knows that he will be killed before he is able to stop at least three of the clones. He had hoped to end this conflict without the use of mass genocide, but now Batman knows he has no choice.

Absolutely no choice…

Dropping his sword to the ground, Batman unwrapped the Mother Box from his arm and quickly sent the signal to Diana, Dick and Barbara for them to begin their retreat. If they remained in the city, or on the North American continent, they would be killed.

"This ends now…"

Batman uses his free hand to drop gas pellets the ground then quickly lifts into the air with the jet-propelled boots. He presses a button on his Mother Box as the Superman clones fly towards him. A light engulfs the room as Batman's life flashes before his eyes. With the way the world has turned for the worse and even as the loss of his parents still hurts, Bruce Wayne is left with only one final thought in his mind, body and soul.

"Diana…"

Then Batman loses the feeling in is his arm.

I hear the retreat signal go off earlier than expected.

Hera, something has gone wrong.

"Now..?" I hear Batgirl nearly scream as she dispatches another of Darkseid's useless drones. "It can't be!"

The three of us have battled many of the fodder in Darkseid's army. We know that his most decorated soldiers march across Asia and Europe as we speak. During this time, we have awaited for the time to come when Batman had planned for us to retreat.

But the signal has come far sooner than expected.

"Let's go", I hear Nightwing say.

He and Batgirl rocket into the sky as I follow behind them. Nightwing opens a boom tube for us to fly in, but he stops halfway before we enter.

"But first we're making a stop!" He screams into the wind. "Open the way back to Themiscrya, Babs!"

He flies towards the opening again as Batgirl opens another boom tube. Batgirl and I fly toward the new opening as Nightwing flies toward the one he had opened. He enters briefly, and then returns to our sight with a very upset Batman in his arms.

"Go!" they both yell to us.

Batgirl and I enter quickly as the paradise of Themiscrya surrounds us once again. We land on the sandy beach as the boom tube remains open. After a few moments that felt like centuries, both Nightwing and Batman enter just as Batgirl closes the opening.

They land on the beach next to us as Batman falls to his knees, removing his cowl. He vomits onto the sand as tears are streaming down his face at an alarming rate. We all know what he intended to do, but what he was not expecting to do was live with his actions afterwards.

Silence takes us all as the sound of the beach and Bruce's sobs could be heard. I struggle with what to do. I want to run to his side and comfort him, but I do not know if that is what he wants right now.

I go with my own instinct.

"Bruce..?" I say as I lean towards him with my hand.

"Don't. Touch. Me."

I stop as his voice growls at me. He quickly rises, avoiding eye contact with any of us, and walks towards the temporary campsite he had set up. I watch him walk as he clutches at his right arm, it is wounded. I turn back to both Dick and Barbara with their masks also removed.

I should have known better.

The look on their faces showed both relief and sorrow. They too began to walk and passed me without saying a word. After everything we had just experienced together…

"What?" I desperately ask them as they walk away from me. "I do not understand…"

"Just go where you need to be now, Diana", Dick says not bothering to look back. "He'll come to you."

So, Dick and Barbara are finding the solace they need in one another as they head for their tent. Bruce is obviously going to take time to come to grips with his feelings. But I will wait. I will wait for him when he is ready, I cannot force him to come to me. He must do it on his own.

I will wait.

"You never came to me that night", I say to Bruce as I finally say something.

I have been watching him go through his belongings in his decimated cave. Trying to find the right thing to say, I decided to get to the point.

Something I hope he still respected.

"I'm sorry", he beats me to the words. "It was not the best time for me."

Bruce turns to face me, his face with a full beard now. I can even see hints of grey in it, and he noticed that I noticed.

"It implies wisdom", he says to me with a smile.

I smile with relief.

"Then there is definite room for growth", I say.

He is wearing the uniform worn by teams sent by Europe to help the relief caused by both Superman's forces and by the anti-matter bomb Bruce detonated in Metropolis. He had donated his entire fortune that remained overseas to help with the effort. Now the name Wayne will forever be attached to a relief charity that is run publicly.

"I hear Dick and Barbara are proud parents", he asks me.

"Yes, they are" I answer. "Tim is a beautiful baby boy. I fed and burped him before I came here."

Bruce smiled as the grey hairs stuck out even more on his face and even a few on his head.

"I'm glad you've got some experience", Bruce says. "I'm hungry myself."

We laugh lightly together as I try to return to a serious tone.

"They can't wait to see you again, Bruce", I say. "It's been five years since they last even heard from you. You wouldn't believe the red tape I had to go through just to find you."

Bruce must like smiling these days, he keeps on doing it.

"Well, we travel all over the hemisphere", he says. "I imagine it's not very easy to keep track of us. But it is for a good cause. Plus, I get to go camping some more. You know how much I love doing that"

I laugh as I take in the fact that he has lost considerable weight. The sacrifices of being a relief worker are great. It explains why there are so few these days. I help out as much as possible while running the Justice League Europe with Nightwing.

It is very rewarding work.

"I came to tell you that whenever you are ready…"

"Diana", Bruce says as his hand comes up and his smile disappearing. "Don't. I haven't worn the cowl in seven years. Right now I'm doing things without the pressure, and it's the best feeling I've had in a long time."

I keep smiling.

"Good", I say as I lean in and give him a kiss on his dirty cheek.

I move to his ear so he can hear me clearly.

"I was referring to you and I."

With the ungodly smells he encounters daily, I know he appreciates the smell I'm allowing him to take in right now. My arms wrap around him for one final hug before I go. I'm surprised to feel his arms around me almost as quickly.

"This must be the shoulder you burped baby Grayson on", he whispers in my ear.

I bring my head back as he smirks at me and I raise my eyebrow to him.

"It is", I answer and back away from him. "Maybe you'll enjoy something similar to that when you are ready. But remember, I can wait forever. You, on the other hand, cannot."

Bruce strokes his beard, his beauty glowing brightly behind the dirty exterior.

"I'll definitely be wiser then", he says.

We smile at each other for a few more moments before I slowly rise into the air.

"Till then, Bruce", I say as I raise more. "Mother says hello."

I rise into the sky just as I hear him say one final thing in return.

"Tell her I loved souvlaki."

Hera, I love that blasted man.