"Watchtower to Batman," said the voice in Bruce's ear. He pasted a stupid smile on his face.

"Sorry, Lucius. I need to slip out for just a moment." To the annoyance though not the surprise of his board of directors, Bruce walked out of the room and straight to his office.

When the door was shut and locked, he poked his ear. "How did you get this frequency?" he demanded.

"We've had it for years," J'onn told him simply. "We do not use it to monitor your movements or those of your allies, if that's why you're worried."

"I'm not. Transmission ended."

"Wait!" And there was the pleading note he'd been waiting for. "We need your help."

"No. You don't. The League made it perfectly clear it could function without me."

"Your argument with Superman notwithstanding, you chose to leave."

"None of you helped me look for Robin. Not one." For months, he'd been pushing this pain down and away, but there was no hiding from J'onn and it frothed out of him like a geyser.

"Bruce." J'onn's voice was quiet and a touch hurt; he'd been in space the whole time, on a mission with Flash and Lantern.

"I'm done."

"We need you. Doomsday is tearing up Washington, and we cannot stop him."

"What makes you think I can?"

"You're Batman," J'onn said simply.

"This is a job for Superman."

"He thinks it's a job for you."

Bruce paused. Had he been the one trying to woo him back, he wouldn't have mentioned Clark. J'onn had to know that saying so would make it even less likely that Bruce would say yes. "I can't help. This is Clark's mess. He was the one who judged Doomsday and send him to the Phantom Zone. I can't clean it up for him."

"Then more people will die while we try to stop him without you," J'onn said.

Now Bruce understood. Superman was asking him to help, knowing he would say no. Then, just as he'd blamed the twelve deaths caused by the Secret Society after that now-infamous "five minute head start" on Bruce, he could lay at Batman's feet any deaths Doomsday caused now. "We called Batman," he would say, "and he didn't come." It might even wipe his conscience clean from not having come when Bruce had needed him, had needed all of them, to try and find Tim.

Bastard, Bruce thought.

"Give me twenty minutes." He heard J'onn's breath catch, and understood J'onn had expected the no, not the yes. "I need to change my suit."

VVVVVVVV

Clark was tired. J'onn had beamed in more Leaguers to help, but the truth was, none of them were getting through, and the wounded were getting beamed out almost as fast as fresh fighters were arriving.

Another transport beam shimmered, and Bruce stood three feet away from him.

"Thanks," Clark said, not trusting himself to say anything else.

"Thank me when he's gone. What have we sent against him?"

"Everything we've got, short of the laser cannon or a nuke."

"The laser cannon is decommissioned," said Bruce.

"That's why we haven't used it."

"What about the magic users?"

"Immune."

"Amazo?"

"We've contacted him, but he's half a galaxy away." He saw in the tightness of Bruce's jaw that he was running low on plans.

"And this isn't considered Omega level?" Bruce asked, ducking behind a building as Static flew by, unconscious; Clark flew up to catch him and carried him to the ground, where he touched Static's comm and said, "Emergency beamout."

He nodded to Bruce and went out to attack the creature again. By now, he knew he wasn't going to defeat it with force, but he could buy the rest time while they figured out how.

He hit Doomsday in the face, swerving and dodging before the other's blows could land. He'd tried the heat vision trick early, and it had failed just as it had failed in the volcano. Instead, he tried burning the creature's eyes, just as one leg spun up and kicked Clark solidly in the hip. He faltered and recovered in time to duck another kick.

Three punches fast to Doomsday's gut, before the creature hit him on the back so hard he was driven six feet into the pavement. Gravel and concrete filled his mouth, and he spat rocks as he tried to climb to his knees. Too late --- Doomsday stepped on his back.

"Withdraw!" Bruce shouted over the comm. "All League, withdraw and take cover, radiation alert!"

Clark struggled below Doomsday's foot, but couldn't move. The creature was crushing him deeper and deeper into the earth. Radiation?

Suddenly he was surrounded by heat. He heard screams, realized some were coming from Doomsday. The asphalt around him grew slick and began to liquify. So hot. Must've sent the nukes.

"Superman!" His comm buzzed but it was melting in his ear. "Superman!" Bruce. "Push him in!"

In?

Clark pushed up, tired and battered. He grabbed hold of Doomsday's foot and pushed. Too much light, too much heat, and he stood, holding the screaming monster. In the bright, he could just see Scott Free standing with his Mother Box, a boom tube open into what could only be a sun, and Clark knew Bruce's plan.

With one desperate toss, he threw Doomsday into the boom tube, into the distant star.

Scott hit the Mother Box to close the boom tube, and collapsed to his knees onto the molten pavement. Clark reached him before he fell, but the star had been so close, and there had been so much radiation. Scott lay in his arms, blind and burned and barely breathing.

"Emergency transport," Clark managed to get out, and watched Scott disappear in what was barely a light at all.

Without the blinding sunlight, everything looked so dark in contrast that when Bruce approached, it was as though he brought all the shadows of the world with him.

"I asked to hold the Mother Box," Bruce said. "He wouldn't let me."

"No," said Clark. Mister Miracle would have believed he would escape. "He's a New God. There's a chance." Except there wasn't, and even as his vision was slowly returning, he saw on Bruce's face that he knew that too.

"How many dead?" Bruce asked him.

"We won't know for a while."

"They're on your hands," Bruce told him simply.

"I know." Five of them in judgement, but it had been Clark's decision. "Bruce. Thanks."

"You'd have thought of it eventually." Later, Clark would think Bruce paid him one of the highest compliments he could, even as he added, "Don't call me again unless the Earth is being destroyed. And next time, have J'onn call my cell phone."

Clark nodded, and watched Bruce turn and walk into a shadow, and then he was gone.

The End