T: Chance of a Lifetime 3

Clark's POV

Diana's eyes looked like pure fire as they stared back at me.

"Diana I can explain," I said as I tried to walk closer to her.

She ignored my pleads and called to the towering Amazon standing beside her.

"Artemis,"

The bodyguard swiftly moved in between us as Diana became to dematerialize before my eyes. I reached out for her but the woman Artemis stood darted in front of my hand. She folded her arms across her chest and shook her head as she looked down at me.

"Don't," she mouthed as Diana teleported out of her office.

My heart sank.

"I didn't mean for this… for her to find out this way…" I said as I slipped off my glasses. "I know," Artemis replied as her face softened.

The woman Artemis reached out and patted me on my shoulder.

"You're a good kid," she continued.

I scoffed, "It's been a long time since anyone's called me a kid."

"Well I've got a thousand years on you," she replied. "So you're a baby to me."

As she spoke she placed her hand in the middle of my chest. Pressing down, she activated

my armor. It spread out from the 'S' hidden under my button-up shirt. As it covered my body Artemis never took her eyes off of me. She was searching my face for something. Whether or not it was my soul or my true intentions, I didn't know. All I knew was that once my armor had covered my body she smiled at me.

"She likes you," Artemis muttered as she removed her hand from my chest.

Lost in thought I barely heard Artemis's words. I took a step back from her and called J'onzz for a pick-up.

"... You know that right…"

"Huh?" I said as I looked at Artemis.

She shook her head as I started to dematerialize.

"That's why she's so pissed," she added. "She has feelings for you…"

My heart stopped.

"She likes me?" I asked.

Sadly, I didn't hear Artemis's response. I had already vanished before I was able to hear her response. Landing outside of Arkham, my gaze was immediately drawn to Diana rushing into the building. The old gothic asylum was covered in green overgrowth with thick towering vines twisted up into the sky.

"Oh shit," I mouthed.

Lowering my gaze, I saw a line of men and women cuffed and on the ground with Batman beside them. In all the years I'd known Bruce, I'd never seen him look so disheveled. There was a look of horror on his face. He was bloodied and covered in dust. As I walked over to Bruce I asked.

"How bad is it Bruce?"

"You don't want to know," Bruce replied breathlessly. "Ivy got out…"

That was all he needed to say. The patients in front of Bruce looked like they had been through hell.

As I approached Bruce, he looked over his shoulder and said, "Remind me to piss her off before every mission."

I looked at him puzzled as I stood beside him.

"Come again?" I asked.

"She took Ivy out in a matter of seconds," Batman said as I stood beside him.

Bruce looked to his left. Leaning forward I saw Poison Ivy with a busted lip and knocked out cold.

"Whatever you did, please save tell me so that I might replicate it for the next mission." he continued.

"Bruce…" I paused for a second.

"She's in beast mode," he continued as he made a sword slicing motion.

Bruce continued to speak but something felt off. Diana had been inside Arkham for too long. I tried to reach out to her but she blocked my attempts to contact her. Was she truly that mad at me to be this reckless?

"...It was kind of hot…"

Bruce's words pulled me back to the present.

"She knows…." I blurted out, cutting Bruce off.

His head snapped in my direction.

"She knows what?"

"J'onzz called me during my interview with her," I answered. "She heard him call me Superman."

The amusement on Bruce's face vanished.

"Ohhh…"

Boom!

A loud explosion shot out from inside Arkham. I immediately scanned the building. Deep within the heart of Arkam, I saw Diana battling one of the patients. He had a pale blue hue to his skin.

"J'onzz, who's attacking Diana?" I asked.

"Mr. Freeze…"

Before Bruce could react I bolted into the building. Bursting through one of the outer walls, I rushed into the building. With super speed, I made my way to Diana. The closer I came the louder her battle with Mr. Freeze became.

"I've got you now…" I heard Mr. Freeze shout.

My legs moved faster than I ever thought possible. I rushed into the courtyard where Diana was with Mr. Freeze. He had his freeze guns aimed at Diana. Half of her body was frozen to the ground. Rage filled me. Without thinking my fire poured out of my eyes in Mr. Freeze's direction.

"Superman!"

Through my rage, I heard Diana call out to me. I tilted my head up just before my heat vision hit Mr. Freeze. Blasting my heat vision up onto the ceiling, they broke a few of the steel beams and glass. Tumbling to the ground, a few thick pieces of glass crashed into Mr. Freeze's body. I rushed toward Diana just before a large piece of steel landed on top of her. Shielding her with my body I heard Mr. Freeze gagging. Looking over my shoulder I saw a large piece of glass sticking out of his body.

"Bruce I need a medevac team down here asap," I called out. "We're in the courtyard."

I felt moving beneath me.

"Diana it's over," I said as I stood to my feet.

As the rubble slid off my back, Diana looked over to Mr. Freeze. He collapsed onto the ground. I rushed towards his body and grabbed hold of the largest piece of glass protruding out of his shoulder.

"The glass isn't in near any vital organs," I said.

Mr. Freeze cursed as he spat into my face as I pulled out the shard of glass from his body. Swiftly I cauterized the open wound. His screams echoed off the wall of the open courtyard. Bruce rushed into the courtyard with medical personnel beside him to the sound of Mr. Freeze's screams. The smell of burning flesh filled the air.

"We'll take it from here Superman," one of the medics said as the knelt beside me.

She placed several bandages over Mr. Freeze's shoulder while another medic rushed over to Diana. She was shivering on the ground and almost all of the cold was drained from her face. She was trying to free herself but her punches lacked their usual power, only leaving a small dent. The medic tried to help her but his tools broke the moment they came in contact with the ice.

"Let me…" I said as I began to walk to them.

The medic stepped away from her. I told him that I'd take it from here. He walked back toward Bruce and Mr. Freeze. Alone, Diana once more tried to break free from the ice but failed.

"I don't need your help," she said as she hit the ice around her once more.

Again the ice didn't budge. I knelt beside her and placed my hand down on the ice.

"I know you're mad at me and I deserve it," I said as I began to press down on the ice.

It began to crack beneath my touch.

"But I'm here for you even if you don't want me to," I added.

Crumbling to dust, the ice broke from around Diana's legs. She tried to move her legs but they didn't.

"Shit…"

Diana tried to rub her legs to get the circulation back into them. As she attempted to stand I caught her in my arms and I picked her up.

"J'onzz I'm going to need a pick-up to the med-bay," I said.

"I'll be fine," she protested.

I ignored her and held her close. I let my inner heat slowly ooze out until she stopped shaking. Before I knew it, we were in the medical bay of the Watchtower. I placed her on the table and covered her in a heated blanket.

"He must have changed his formula," J'onzz said breaking the silence between us.

After a few minutes, J'onzz left us once his medical analysis was done. Alone, I sat down beside Diana. I reached for her hand but she pulled it away.

"You can leave too," she said coldly. "Just have Artemis come and get me."

"I will once you hear me out,"

Diana's POV

"Whoever you are…"

I needed to get away from him. Storming into battle wasn't the wisest thing I could do at this moment but I did. I called J'onzz to teleport me directly in front of Arkham. Which he did thankfully. As I landed I rushed past the police and directly into battle. Bruce was taking a punch to the head from a rather large weed. Behind that weed was Poison Ivy.

Before she could react, I rushed toward her. Cutting several of the vines that separated us with my blade, I hit her with the hilt of my blade on the side of her face. She fell to the ground instantly. Thankfully, most of the patients under her control stopped what they were doing a joined her on the ground. Bruce and I began to pick them up. A part of me wondered where Superman was but I shook the thought from my mind. He lied to me.

"Is that everyone?" I asked Bruce.

He shook his head, "Someone else broke out with her…"

As Bruce spoke I felt Superman's presence behind us. I needed to get away from him. Without thinking I rushed back into Arkham. Once inside I heard the sound of ice cracking.

"No, no…" I heard a man pleading.

I followed the sound of the man's voice until I reached a glass-covered courtyard. There was a man with blue skin standing in front of a woman floating in a tank. He held out a gun in her direction.

"I've got you, Nora…" he added.

"Put the gun down," I ordered as I stepped out of the shadows.

The pale blue man snapped his head in my direction.

"You don't understand," he said as he pointed his gun at me. "She'll die if I don't…"

I rushed the man. He fired a blast of ice. I tried to block it with my blade, but the ice froze it over. No longer able to hold my weapon, I dropped it from my grasp. Before I could block his next blast with my braces, he took my legs out from under me. Instantly my body grew limp as a cold sensation took over my body. Swiftly it crept up my legs up to my thighs.

"I've got you now…" he bellowed as she stepped toward me.

I tried to scramble to my feet but suddenly I heard the supersonic sound of Superman bursting through the walls. As he entered the courtyard, I felt great shame as his eyes landed on me. I felt so weak. This was my fault. If I hadn't rushed in by myself none of this would be happening.

"Running away from your problems…" I thought.

As Superman stared at me, I watched the rage fill his eyes. He was about to lose control. I called out to him as his eyes release their fire. Thankfully my call caused him to turn his gaze upward. The sound of crashing steel and glass surrounded us. I covered my head with my arms and said a prayer. I was stronger than the average person but I wasn't bulletproof. The thickness of the glass would still draw blood. I closed my eyes as I braced myself to be hit with shards of broken glass and steel, yet they never came. Around me, I got the sweet smell of him. I opened my eyes to the red cloth shielding me.

"It's over Diana," he said.

Why did he try and save me? As the sound of falling debris stopped Superman, stood to his feet. I slowly looked up. The man who'd attacked me had fallen to the ground. A large piece of glass stuck out of his chest. I tried to join him at the man's side but the ice around me had spread further up my legs. I tried to break the ice with my fist but it didn't make a dent. The man's screams filled the air between us.

The next few moments turned into a blur. I no longer could feel my legs and my arms started to grow numb. Superman rushed back to my side.

"I'll be fine…" I said in a daze.

He was too close. My body collapsed as I felt the cold take over me. My face collided with something warm. Suddenly, I felt weightless. Weightless and warm.

I heard J'onzz's voice as a bright light hit my eyes. He moved my body around as if it was a ragdoll as I slipped in and out of consciousness. Before I knew it I felt a warmth take my hand. As I opened my eyes, I saw Superman seated beside me.

"You can go too…" I said coldly.

I lied. I felt betrayed by him but at this moment it felt nice to have someone with me.

"Just have Artemis come and get me…"

"I will once you hear me out," he replied.

I turned away from him.

"What is there to say?" I said. "I don't even know who you are…"

"I'm still me…" he replied. "The me you've worked with for years. I'm still that man."

"That man wouldn't have lied to me," I snapped back.

In my bed, I brought my knees up to my chest.

"I didn't mean to Diana," he replied as he placed his hand on my side. "Clark is my safe place. He's something I can escape into when I need a break from being this."

I knew that feeling. A need to escape, that's why I left Themyscira. I needed an escape from being just a princess. That's why I loved Artemis, they were my escape. But unlike Superman, I never lied about it. I'd been open about it with those I cared about.

"Did you not trust me to keep your secret?"

As I spoke I turned to face him. He looked down at me with eyes so filled with regret. He leaned in closer to me. His face was inches from my own. My heart raced.

"I trust you with my life," he replied.

I leaned in and our lips touched.

KNOCK, KNOCK

"Your chariot has arrived Princess… Oh my…"

We pulled apart as Artemis entered the room.

"Did I just interrupt something…"

"No!" we both said in unison.

Artemis laughed, "She like walks on the beach."

"Artemis…" I hissed as felt my face flush.

"What it's not like I said you like it from behind," Artemis replied with a wink. "Tie her up and…"

"OUT!" I shouted.

"Don't fuck it up kid," Artemis said as she closed the door behind her. "This is a chance of a lifetime."

"I won't," Superman replied as he looked into my eyes.