Disclaimer: Still don't own Justice League, Batman, Diana, etc, etc. Still hoping though!
All reviews appreciated! Thanks to those of you who have!
As always, perspective changes with –VvV-
If you're unsure of how action progressed from Chapter 7 to 8, I'll try to simplify it. The Secret Society has captured all the members of the Justice League, or so they think… Determined to defeat them on a large stage, Gorilla Grodd and the Secret Society bring them to Gotham to…
Chapter 8, Love is a Battlefield, by Pat Benatar
"We are strong; no one can tell us we're wrong…"
Bruce's perspective-
When I finally came to, I found myself encased in a glowing green glass tube, bound in an "X" shape with my hands and feet spread and, to my dismay, thoroughly unable to move or budge my bonds. Locked in place, I could only just turn my head to the side, secured at the neck as well, only moving enough to view the tail feathers of Hawkgirl to my left and the shining blue and red of Superman to my right. The others, I assumed, were also captured, imprisoned in similar fashion.
Taking in a deep breath, I recognized the telltale odor of chloroform, traces of it lingering in the air surrounding me. No doubt that was how I and the others had been kept unconscious. I had no idea of the time that had passed since the members of the Secret Society had lured me into their snare, their false Flash being used to imprison me. In my arrogance, I had allowed myself to believe that I was able to handle the likes of this group, but with the added addition of Gorilla Grodd, the cerebral powers of the group were too powerful for my mind to adapt to. I had been struggling to regain control of my mind and resume the fight when I had been seized, detained by the group of criminals and presumably placed in this electrified tube.
My capture had been somewhat of a learning experience – that no matter how finely honed the body, the mind was still a fickle machine, capable of rendering one powerless no matter the physical strength. It was a lesson that would pay for me not to forget in the future. And, once I engineered an escape, I would be certain to find a way to protect myself from Grodd's powers, to shield my mind from attack at all costs.
First though, discerning an escape route was my immediate concern. As I worked the bonds at my hands, trying to determine the amount of slack given to my wrists and fingers, I could hear a tinny voice echoing through the partial obscurity surrounding my prison – the voice of Grodd. I could make out pieces of what he was saying; listening intently, I realized that he was speaking through a microphone, the tinny echo being the only part that I could hear. Paying attention to the words I managed to catch, I heard the word arena and realized that he was addressing some sort of stadium crowd and my mind immediately harked back to days before when I had noticed that the Gotham Knights would be playing this weekend, a large stage not only filled with devoted fans but millions of viewers at his beck and call.
Realizing what Grodd intended, I quickly began to work at my bonds, trying in desperation to free myself and the others before we were released like puppets on a string, marionettes on the public stage for Grodd to humiliate us.
And then, to my frustration, I could hear the roof above my little prison cell begin to scrape apart, the panels rising to allow the imprisoned members of the Justice League to ascend through, into the stadium, into a nightmare scene of stunned faces and gasps of horror. We, the team who were supposed to be the heroes, the team who could protect the world from all harm, were put on display like animals at a zoo, trapped behind partitions for the world to stare at in disillusionment and antagonism.
We had disappointed them on and now we were nothing more than a spectacle, the remnants of a shattered team.
And Grodd began to play on the fear and the horror rumbling through the crowd. "There they are," he said, gesturing to us with his free hand. "Your heroes." I clenched my teeth and stared straight forward, not wanting anyone to see the shame and degradation rolling through me to be displayed in such a manner, to have the entire world knowing that I had been unable to elude capture, that I was less than absolutely perfect at my chosen occupation. I couldn't even listen to Grodd's speech, tuning out the words with all the powers of concentration that I possessed.
Yet, unexpectedly, the magnified tubing surrounded me had disappeared and the braces securing me were released, allowing me freedom. I immediately dropped my hands, stepping forward to look down at our rescuer – a hero in the form of a man of clay. And then, before my eyes, he transformed into another familiar figure – a green Martian complete with blue cape and serious expression. Leaping down to the group, I prepared myself for battle, knowing that what lay ahead would require each of our strengths, both individually and as a team.
I watched the frozen form of what I had assumed was J'onn J'onnz tumble to the ground from his imprisonment, the ice shattering and the pieces suddenly liquefying, reforming into the villainous Clayface as he took his place next to the Secret Society members.
"Grodd's been messing with our minds," said Green Lantern, hovering just behind me.
"Great," said Flash, irritation lacing his voice, "How do we fight it?"
"We get over it, that's how," Green Lantern returned, a hard edge to his voice and his features.
And then, our battle cries roaring in our ears, we took off across the field, some on the sky, some on the ground, racing towards our opponents on this field of battle, the Secret Society, knowing that this was our chance to redeem ourselves as a team, to prove that we could defeat these criminals in public or private, with or without the tension that had crept up into our group as of late.
Chaos erupted on the field, each of us working together, working alone, taking on one, two villains at a time, trying badly to bring this skirmish to a close, to prove victorious at long last against this group. I unleashed batarang after batarang, keeping careful tabs on my teammates to ensure that none of us were falling or failing, that we had learned from our previous encounters and were putting those teachings into effect.
I observed Shade advancing on me, staff in hand, as the darkness streamed out, I launched myself into the air, flipping over the inky curtain of black and aiming a batarang at the "nightstick." As it hit, the staff flew into the air, disarming Shade and I almost laughed at the expression of panic and shock on his face. It wasn't as if we hadn't told him in previous times to get a handle for the weapon. But I managed to keep my face straight, glowering at him as I put my lessons from the past into effect, stalking him as he retreated, moving backwards step by step.
"You never learn, do you?" I asked him, dark humor at the forefront and feeling victory close at hand, I was a trifle cocky in the choice of my words.
I reeled backwards when his foot planted itself against my jaw, surprising a groan out of me as I fell, ill-prepared for his martial maneuver.
"Actually," he replied calmly, "I have learned a few things." And then, assuming a martial arts stance, he waited. I rose to my feet and reflecting his pose, beckoned him forward, egging him to take me on. He lunged forward and I dodged, bobbing and weaving, before taking off forwards and returning the favor he had given me earlier, knocking him to the ground with a well-placed kick.
Around me, the battle raged, ice flying as Killer Frost worked her particular form of terror, Hawkgirl and Grodd locked in a desperate fight for supremacy, and Green Lantern and Sinestro trading blow after blow from their power rings. With our side steadily winning, I watched as the Society members began to lose their teamwork abilities and steadily retreat into single combat, desperately trying to contain us, but to no avail.
Shade and I were still locked in combat as well, until in stepped the familiar blue and red form of Superman stepped in between us, surprising Shade, bringing a look of panic to his pale features as he stumbled off backwards, seeking to escape as he shouted, "I knew this wouldn't work! I knew it!"
And he turned, spindly legs beginning to pick up speed and I released a batarang, its coils looping around Shade's legs and toppling him and his top hat to the ground.
"I could have…" I began to say to Superman before abruptly stopping myself. As much as I didn't want to admit it to myself, the other members of the League had become well-respected colleagues and their help was invaluable to my work on occasion. Deep inside, a little piece of me screamed that they were also, although I would deny it profusely to anyone who suggested it, friends. At least, of a sort. Together, they had changed my life, allowing me to focus on Gotham knowing that the rest of the world was secure under their watchful eyes. For that alone, I owed them the courtesy of a due of respect.
"What?" Superman said angrily, turning to face me with eyes flaring with the heat locked inside him, the barely suppressed rage.
And, for once, I gave the man his due, in words that rarely managed to cross my mind or my lips. "Thanks."
From behind us, with a roar, Clayface loomed, soaring twenty feet into the air and transforming his body into a slue of appendages, each carrying an assortment of weapons. As the fists began to fly, I dove backwards, out of his immediate range. And then a red blur appeared, flying around the bottom of Clayface and planting display fireworks every few feet of mud he encountered. He raced off and Hawkgirl swooped down, lighting the fireworks with her energy mace and within seconds, the upper body of Clayface was blasted into the air courtesy of the explosives while colored lights dotted the skyline, a breathtaking end to seal our victory. Cheers rose from the crowd, excitement and relief heavy in the air.
After Superman dispensed with Grodd, Flash raced over to him, signaling for a high five in obvious elation, his smile young and sweet in its exuberance.
"We're back in business!" he yelled above the noise and when Superman made no move to return the gesture, his face began to fall, concern dotting his expression. "Aren't we?"
"A lot of things were said," replied Diana, arms crossed over her chest, as the rest of us walked over to join the two.
"Yeah, but that was all mind control. We didn't mean…" Flash began, his face thoughtful and so unbelievably youthful in its naïveté.
"We meant every word," stated J'onn and Flash looked around at the other members of the Justice League. Forgiveness was not written on any of the faces – mostly, it was a mixture of irritation and shame as we realized that we had a long way to go before we could move past this incident and truly work together as a team in any capacity.
"So, what do we do?" Shayera asked in a soft voice, refusing to meet any of our eyes, her usual boldness missing from her current demeanor.
"All we can do is say we're sorry and move on," asserted John Stewart, before we walked out of the stadium.
Next Chapter: The Warrior – A sparring session leads to some unexpected results…
Great line from this episode that I skipped: Giganta to Superman: You wouldn't hit a woman, would you? The sadistic boy-scout (hehe) actually stops, mid-battle like, you're right! I can't! And then in flies Diana, who says: I would. Now that's a woman.
Just wanted to let all of you know - no update tomorrow. No access to the computer, sorry! But Monday is SiriusLover's birthday, so I'll definitely post one then!
HELP WANTED: I know that I'm writing the episode Hereafter next, and right now, I'm working on a title for it, based, as always, on some quote from the episode. Well, I found too many, so I'm taking some votes! And other suggestions.
Here are my options:
The Darkness
The Never Ending Battle
The World's Greatest Hero
There's Still Hope
Things to Say
Nothing but Respect