A Metaphor

"Well that didn't last long."

Flash's words were rather poignant, Diana found. They perfectly summarized the general feeling of the room. After gathering the League following her meeting with Steve Trevor, she had informed them all of the brisk and confrontational conversation.

"I doubt anyone of us will be losing any sleep over this," Shayera added, the Thanagarian lounging in her chair. "Government agencies act like jilted exs when things don't go their way. I'm just surprised it only took this long for them to turn against us."

"There is more," Diana said then. After all, opening with A.R.G.U.S. was really a small footnote in comparison to other information she had. It was best to put it out there and end it quickly. "Luthor has in his possession one of the Brainiac probes."

There was a short silence before Flash asked, "How did old crome dome get his hands on one of those? I thought A.R.G.U.S. picked up all of the probes."

Hawkgirl straightened herself in her seat. "Except the one that Trevor guy said went missing during transport. Do you think it's possible Luthor picked that one up?"

"That's what I was thinking," Diana agreed. She was happy to see her fellow Sister was following her line of logic. It helped that she was a detective by trade, so she could make that leap quicker than most. At that thought of detective though, the Amazon couldn't help but glance to the other two investigators in the room.

J'onn was looking impassive, which was his usual state. He must have come to the same conclusion and had not said anything. As for Batman, he was just as stoic as the Martian. If either one of them agreed with the idea, then the dark-haired woman knew they were on the right track.

Thankfully, it was the more experienced of the two that spoke up, lending credence to the spoken theory. "Luthor has the ability and means to pry one of those probes out of the government's hands," Batman stated. "Not to mention the determination to do so. How did you find out he has one?"

"Because Steve Trevor told me," she told him. "Apparently Luthor claimed the League gave him the probe for further study."

"We what?!" Flash exclaimed, nearly hopping out of his seat. "You've got to be kidding me? How could anyone believe we'd work with a pain in the ass like Luthor? I mean, it's known that he's tried to kill Big Blue multiple times!"

"Accused, but never convicted," Batman pointed out. "And it seems to me A.R.G.U.S. was just looking for an excuse to have whatever working relationship with the League to break down. Imagine if it comes out that the Justice League turned to a private corporation for assistance on an investigation rather than the government? That's a smear campaign waiting to happen."

"This is very troubling," J'onn spoke, entering the conversation for the first time. "Assuming it is true that Luthor stole the probe, what purpose would he have in blaming us?"

"Aside from putting the blame on us for why there's a missing probe?" Shayera rhetorically asked. "It also puts a strain between the League and the U.S. government. It's happening already. That bald jackass is just using this to make our jobs harder."

"Well, you know what I say?" Flash said, an angry tone in his voice. "I say we make a trip to Luthor's and take that robot back. If he says we gave it to him, then it's perfectly reasonable for us to take it."

"That's not a half-bad idea," Shayera agreed. "Luthor's given us the perfect way to take the probe back."

"You can't really believe he'll hand it over," Batman was quick to point out. "Luthor didn't get to where he is by luck. No doubt he'll spin the narrative; in fact, I'm sure he already has one ready. It wouldn't be a good idea to go confront him."

"But we can't leave Brainiac in his hands," Hawkgirl shot back. "There's no telling what he could do with that thing. No doubt he'd try to make some weapon to kill Superman with."

"No doubt about that," Flash muttered his agreement.

"All I'm saying is that we shouldn't go charging in without a plan. We need to expect that he'll resist any attempt at losing the probe. Any agreeable stance he takes should be taken with a grain of salt. If he's willing to give up the probe, that just means he's learned everything he can about it and had no further use for it. He could then say he returned the probe to us if A.R.G.U.S. decides to confiscate it, which will only lead to further strain between us and the government."

"Batman makes an excellent point," J'onn said.

"So what, we should just leave it in Luthor's hands?" Shayera demanded.

"No way, not gonna happen," Flash added.

Suddenly, Diana found herself at the center of attention in the room as the four heroes turned their collective attention towards her. It wasn't said, but it was clear that she was the tie-breaking vote: to take the Brainiac probe from Luthor, or take a different approach. Glancing from each side to the other, the Amazon knew each faction had valid points.

However, only one had an immediate outcome that resolved the situation.

Metropolis was a beautiful city. It was the pride of the eastern seaboard, often upheld as the "City of Tomorrow." It fully embraced the idea of forward progress, constantly improving itself rather than holding onto its past, one that had long since been forgotten.

And at the center of this city was one of its tallest buildings, the headquarters of LexCorp. The large, L-shaped logo blazed out from near the top of the skyscraper, announcing to all just who owned this building.

Today, that only made for a large bull's eye. As a blur of red and blue, Diana flew like a missile, fist stretched out in front of her. She didn't slow down, even as she slammed right into the building's wall, ripping through it like tissue paper.

Debris was sent flying throughout the office as the Amazon came to a landing on plush carpet. Behind her, J'onn and Sheyara landed, having allowed her to be their battering ram. An instant later, Flash appeared, having run up the side of the building and into the hole she had made.

Turning, the dark-haired woman found what she was after. Seated behind a large desk was Luthor, who was looking at her startled before he returned her hardened stare with one of indifference. "We need to talk, Luthor," the Amazon spoke coldly.

"I do have a door," the bald man replied as he pressed his hands onto the top of the desk and pushed himself onto his feet. "To what do I owe this unexpected surprise from the famous Justice League?"

"Cut the crap," Shayera said as she moved up next to Diana, taking center stage. "You know exactly why we're here. Hand over the robot."

"I see A.R.G.U.S. has ratted me out," Luthor surmised blandly.

"C'mon, you knew you were on a ticking clock the moment you told them we gave it to you," the Thanagarian retorted. "You only said it to take the heat off of you."

"Now don't be absurd. You aren't the only ones that have a vested interest in making sure the world is safe. Who would I do business with if the world is nothing more than a burning wasteland?"

"I'm sure you'd find someone," Flash interjected.

That was when the doors to the office were flung open. Looking over her shoulder, Diana saw a woman with a machine gun come flying in, taking aim at the heroes. She was the one that was always at Luthor's side, Mercy, she believed she was called.

"Mr. Luthor, are you alright?" Mercy asked, never once tearing her eyes from the Justice League.

"Right on time, Mercy," Luthor returned, not the least bit ruffled. "The Justice League was just leaving. Do be a dear and escort them off the premises."

"Yes, Mr. Luthor."

If either of these two thought a machine gun was going to frightened them, then they were sorely mistaken. Guns were an everyday annoyance to an Amazon, the Fastest Man Alive, and a Martian. They were not going to leave this building empty handed.

"That's enough posturing."

The deep, gravelly voice caught everyone off-guard, including Luthor. Looking back towards the billionaire, Diana soon found her eyes going to the left to a dark corner, where Batman seemed to materialize out of thin air. Even thought she had seen him do it plenty of times, she had no idea how he got into the office, especially with all of the people present, not to mention the lack of a visible ventilation system.

Luthor for once seemed taken aback as he whipped his head around and found the vigilante standing a short distance away from him. He even began to sputter before he quickly calmed himself again.

By then Batman strode towards him until he came to a stop next to the businessman. Abruptly, he shot a hand out and grabbed Luthor by his shirt, yanking him towards him. "Take us to the robot now."

"Bullying doesn't work on me," Luthor spat back, clearly not enjoying the proximity to the dark-clad man. "And the situation hasn't changed."

Batman didn't seem perturbed by that. "If you're referring to your bodyguard, you better reevaluate that. Take away the Justice League—where most of the members aren't even afraid of guns—I rather doubt your bodyguard is going to open fire with you in her crosshairs."

That was when Diana realized that Batman had made sure to put Luthor between him and Mercy, an unexpected human shield. It seemed Luthor realized this as well as his body stiffened. A moment later and he held a hand up, making a gesture with it. In response, Mercy lowered her weapon, thought she seemed reluctant to do so.

"You just want the robot, right?" Luthor spoke bluntly. Upon seeing Batman's nod, Luthor jerked himself backwards, pulling himself out of the Caped Crusader's grasp. Straightening out his shirt, he then said, "Very well, I'll take you there myself. Mercy?"

Mercy didn't respond this time, instead turning around and walking out of the office. Luthor followed her, the Justice League tailing him as they all left the room. They were led to a set of elevators, one of which was opening. Without a word, all seven of them entered the elevator, the doors closing soon after.

"Forgive me for not giving you the grand tour," Luthor spoke as they began their descent. "Business is money after all. I'll show you right to the robot. It's being kept at the other end of the lab. We've made a few...discoveries with it."

"Really? Like what?" Flash couldn't help but ask.

Luthor went silent at that, waiting until the elevator slowed to a stop and the doors opened. He then led the group out, entering the large laboratory. All around them, researchers in white coats worked on various projects, though that came to a stop as the people began gawking at the heroes. "I'm certain you've done your own research into the robot. You've run into the robot's coded software, yes?"

"We have," J'onn answered briefly.

"Have you had any luck deciphering it?"

"Some."

Luthor didn't seem perturbed by the short responses. "My team has managed to translate the alien code into binary. We're just about done with the translation and soon we'll even know the operating systems."

Diana couldn't help but glance to Batman and J'onn, neither of whom looked concerned. Their poker faces were impeccable. Still, she couldn't help worrying over the thought of Luthor having such programming at his fingertips.

Suddenly, Flash bolted to a wall; make that, a large glass window. "Whoa," the red-clad man gasped.

Looking to the window, Diana soon saw what had captivated the man. An aircraft roughly the size of the Javelin was on the other side. Though whereas the Javelin had smoother curves, this aircraft had hard edges, giving it a more angular look. There was also the presence of visible weapons present.

Luthor suddenly made a beeline right for Flash, coming to stand next to him. "Truly a magnificent piece," he remarked, admiring the craft much like the speedster. "It's only a prototype, but it holds promise."

"Where do I get me one of those?" Flash asked out loud.

"If you're a good boy, maybe Santa will bring it to you." Incredulously, Flash looked at Luthor, but the man had turned and returned to the rest of the League. "As I was saying, the binary translation has advanced our project considerably."

"What else have you discovered?" J'onn questioned.

For a brief moment, there was a look of frustration on the man's face, one he hid in the next instant. "Not much, I'm afraid. This robot is the most advanced thing I've ever seen. We are close on creating a hacking program for it."

There was movement out of the corner of Diana's eye, one she realized came from Batman. The vigilante seemed to perk up at that discovery. "You believe you can hack into the robot's operating system?" J'onn asked, seeming to voice the dark-clad man's thoughts. Perhaps he was.

"Anything can be hacked, given enough persistence, determination, and skill," Luthor boasted. By then, they had reached the other side of the lab. They stood in front of a door with a pad, the imprint of a hand on it. Luthor calmly placed his hand on the pad and a green light shone, moving from the top of the pad to the bottom. Then there was a beep and the door began to slide open.

They were greeted with the sight of an empty room. For a moment, Diana was puzzled by this. That was until she heard Shayera growl, "What the hell is this?"

"This is a perfect metaphor," Luthor responded. "For what I intend to give you."

Nothing. He was giving them nothing. Diana couldn't help tightening her hands into fists. Why that arrogant, chauvinistic—

"So you took us all the way here to show us that?" Flash asked incredulously. "What the hell, man?"

"Oh, there were a couple other reasons," the businessman shrugged. "I will admit wasting your time is an added perk. The other was to show you that the robot is no longer here. You can search it all you want, but you'll find nothing."

"You wanna bet?" Flash shot back snidely.

"If this is the extent of your cooperation, then so be it," J'onn suddenly interjected, surprising the group. "We will take our leave."

"What? But we're here for the robot, J'onn," Shayera protested. "And we aren't leaving empty-handed!"

The Martian ignored her, instead heading back towards the elevator, Batman in lockstep with him. Diana looked to Flash and Shayera before the three of them went after them, leaving Luthor and Mercy behind. The Amazon didn't bother to chance a look at the two, knowing the insufferable smirks that would be on their faces.

They didn't really catch up with the two men until they arrived at the elevator. Not a word was spoken until the doors shut and they began their ascent. "What the hell, J'onn," the Thanagarian snapped. "Seriously, what the hell?"

"It was obvious Luthor was toying with us," the Martian explained. "This was merely a way for him to get out of the trap Batman had placed him in in his office."

"So what now? We don't have the robot and we sure as hell can't leave it here."

"And it won't. We'll be...outsourcing the extraction."

There was a slight glance from J'onn, but Diana caught it. Following the look, she found it was directed at Batman, and suddenly she understood. It seemed their colleague was going to make a return trip to LexCorp.

And suddenly she felt better about their leaving.

It wasn't often that Luthor would even use the word "giddy" to describe himself. The recent interaction and confrontation with the Justice League, however, left only that word as a description for how he felt.

Honestly, it was too easy.

"Happersen wanted me to tell you that they're finished with the relocation. Progress is resuming," Mercy told him as they returned to his office, the same one with a noticeable hole in it.

"Everything remains strictly on a need to know basis," the tycoon responded as he reached his desk, reactivating a computer on it. A swift tapping of a password and he was in. "In the meantime, I want crews in here repairing the damage. I also want legal on this; the bill goes to the Justice League for its needless destruction of my property."

"Understood," Mercy replied, nodding her head, her posture as stiff as always.

A few more taps brought up several windows on the monitor. One of the windows ended up filling the whole screen, but it was one that Luthor wanted. It was security feed, specifically the footage of the Justice League's little invasion. From the first second of their arrival to the last where they departed, this little gem was going to be working overtime.

All that needed to be done was to shave off a few seconds here and there and make sure that hole wasn't so prominent in the shots. The bullshit story he had fed A.R.G.U.S. would need to continue, and playing off the League with that agency was going to be quite entertaining. In a way, he was almost disappointed that a certain blue and red menace wasn't there.

Hmm, from this angle, it appeared as if the League was more stressed than hostile. Definitely this angle would be used…

As a gust of wind entered his office, the cool air brushing against his skin, Luthor found that he needed to add something. "Until renovations are complete, I'll need to relocate too. Perhaps to a sub-basement where I can keep a closer eye on Happersen and the robot."

"What about meetings and other business?" his bodyguard inquired and the woman looked like she wanted to raise an eyebrow at him. Her control over her emotions were outstanding enough that Mercy continued to remain stoic and professional.

"Conference rooms will do. We'll use the need for renovation as our reason," the CEO dismissed. Now he was keeping a keen eye on the brief tour of his top floor up and to the elevators. Yes, there did not seem to be too much animosity, especially if he used an angle from behind.

Then there was the elevator. In there was audio which is why he had said what he had said. Remove a few seconds, as well as some words, and then you had an even better version of actual events. Yes, it had been a slip-up, but the bald man had recovered quickly enough to intentionally say the rest.

Of course, the short aside with the Flash enamored of his prototype had to be kept. While there was no official name for it, that craft was meant to be a LexCorp version of the Justice League's Javelin air and spacecraft. Naturally, Luthor had to add his own touches to it. There was some leaning towards calling it a Lance, or perhaps something more fanciful like Starkiller or Justice Buster.

Names would be pending until he was ready to begin marketing it to his military contact.

In the end, what mattered was that he made material to not only buy more time, but also keep two potential allies from becoming just that. As if Luthor would allow anything the Boy Scout had touched to ever blossom. Keep the League isolated and perched on a pedestal long enough, and eventually someone would come along to knock it down.

Personally, Luthor would have preferred to take that role himself, but as an upstanding citizen of Metropolis, a certain image would need to be maintained. There would always be those who begrudge him, or knew the truth, but a pristine public image only marred by an occasional scandal or two was a necessity if he wanted to remain successful.

Showing the Justice League up today was an unexpected but enjoyable surprise. There was still more in store, and that would come in all due time.

In the meantime, they would need to speed up progress on the robot. Happersen was making great progress, but it would need to end sooner rather than later. To take their time was to tempt fate, and Luthor knew better than to do that.

This was his key to getting one over that so-called angel from the heavens, and he was not going to give it up without a long, drawn out fight.

Sore was not the right word for how the Kryptonian felt. Sore was an understatement. Pain throbbed throughout his body, and weakness kept it still.

No, no not weakness. Superman attempted to turn—in what direction, probably his right side—but found something solid holding onto him. His legs were held still, his waist could barely turn, his chest and arms met up against an unyielding force that curved around his torso and pressed against his back. His neck seemed to have some space, but again something was right up against it.

That left the awakening Kryptonian to open his eyes, the only thing that felt air against them. A part of him was wondering what weapon Luthor had hit him with this time. Another part debated on what monster or alien creature decided to use him as a punching bag. His blurred vision took time to make out what was directly in front of him, and so far it seemed those mentioned parts of him might be wrong.

He was...he was in a large chamber, pinpricks of red light directed right at him, and he was encased in this...thing. Then it all came back in a flash, no pun intended towards his speedster of a teammate.

Without the full support of the League, he had gone up into space and tracked down Brainiac, some strange alien cyborg and not an AI program. The thing restraining him had been what he initially found the green-skinned alien in,

And he had gotten out of it at some point. That meant the Kryptonian could too...if he could figure out how the thing worked. It was so confining that even when in a room as large as this, it felt claustrophobic No matter what struggles he did, there wasn't even an...even a...a millimeter of room to work with. Even going as far as to exert pressure with his fingertips on whatever surface he could feel accomplished nothing.

"You have returned to consciousness earlier than estimated. The timing is irrelevant, but will be recorded nonetheless." Heavy footsteps accompanied the deep voice, and Superman strained to try and spot its source.

Brainiac made it easier for him by walking into view. The alien had undergone a wardrobe change, no longer revealing a black and white and pink-glowing body suit, his captor bore something more sleek, metallic in appearance with definitions of metal plates resembling various muscle groups. It was like looking at a space-age suit of armor, one with various, circular designs that continued to glow that pink color.

Cables still descended down and connected to the ports in the large alien's head. It was a very uneasy thing to see, especially after suddenly recalling what everything looked like under the skin. Why Brainiac still kept them connected remained to be seen.

Superman must have been staring, because the armored alien stated, "This is nothing more than a mobile bio-shell. It is not as efficient as the one you are currently in, but it will maintain the stasis of my body until I am finished with you."

"What…" The Kryptonian's voice came out raspy, and he paused as he swallowed, his dry mouth and throat discomforting. It took a few seconds to get his saliva glands working, but even then he was still hoarse. "What do you plan to do?"

"Ultimately, to learn everything there is to know about you, Kal-El." Brainiac paced around the captured Man of Steel before coming to a stop directly in front of the dark-haired man. "Much time and energy will be required for that, formulating hypotheses and preparing tests require effort before they can be administered. In the meantime, I will deal with the contamination your presence has spread."

There it was again, the word "contamination." It was as if Brainiac saw him as some kind of bug or disease that spread about, infecting whatever he touched.

"You keep saying that…" His hoarse tone came out more like a growl, but it accurately conveyed what he was feeling.

"My knowledge is not to be shared. I am the foremost expert on Krypton and there will be no other," Brainiac answered, his green eyes boring holes in the Kryptonian. "Anyone else who possesses such information will not be allowed to exist freely, unless they are part of a sample I have taken and no other way is permissible."

There was a feeling in the man raised in Kansas' gut; it told him he wasn't going to like where this was going.

"The planet you have adopted as home is completely contaminated," Brainiac continued, turning away from the bound Kryptonian. "I cannot allow it to know more than I about any given subject. That includes you, Son of Jor-El. It is very fortunate that I have been able to trace Earth's current whereabouts. I will complete two objectives, the first being the collection of human society and culture, and the second to eliminate the knowledge of you. Due to the acquisition of your personal ship, once I am finished with Earth, I will venture to any and all other worlds you have contaminated and continue the process until I am the sole possessor of all Kryptonian knowledge once more."

His gut had been right, he hadn't liked where this was going.

"You're going to be attacking Earth," Superman accused, attempting to fight against the confines of the bio-shell he was trapped in and failing once more.

"I am," Brainiac all but confirmed. Before the green-skinned alien, a holographic screen material, flashing into existence. The image it held was that of a small planet, one that grew by the second. As more and more details made themselves known, the Kryptonian could only widen his eyes.

That was an image of Earth, and it was growing bigger...because they were getting closer to it.

"Don't…" Superman gasped out. "Please...leave Earth alone. I'll...I'll give you what you want. I'll tell you everything you want to know. Just leave Earth alone."

"Your attachment to this planet reveals much," Brainiac remarked. "However, save your pleas. Earth's fate was decided long before you were ever born. It was only a matter of time before I found it, your contamination notwithstanding. All you have accomplished was speeding up the timing of its collection.

"Watch, Kal-El. I will give you a gift, one for saving me the time and effort of tracking you down. You will witness how I operate, you will watch as I take my sample, and then you will observe as I bring about Earth's final moments. When I am finished, then I will begin with you. I will learn everything there is to know about you, about the secrets of Kryptonians that until now I have been ignorant to.

"Thus I offer my gratitude for the experience. When I am finished, the knowledge I will have gained will be priceless, and will be incorporated into myself. Do not fear, Son of Jor-El, both you and your adoptive world will continue to live..."

There was a pause, deliberate and it sucked Superman further into the moment. Nothing else seemed to matter, not even the visual of the approach planet. It would only end once Brainiac finished his sentence, and the suspense indeed would soon end.

It would end with two ominous words.

"...in me."