A/N:Hey guys! I'm not sure I depicted Bruce correctly here, but I decided to put a little more anguish in this story. Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading!

Haunted Past

"Batman? Can you get up? Batman!" Oracle's voice rang through his earpiece. No response. Nothing.

"I'll go get him… stay here with Dinah and Helena." Diana quickly took off towards Batman fearing the worst. Not so much about his physical health, but his psychological state of mind. Diana didn't know all the details of what exactly happened between those two in the past, but she had a very good idea and knew that it was destroying Bruce inside. Diana had to be very careful with him… even the slightest slip could easily set his emotional defenses off and push her away. It was always difficult dealing with his emotions during dark times, but this was by far the darkest that she's ever encountered with him. Her execution has to be flawless.

"First thing's first… I'll update him on Dinah and Helena's condition…get his mind focused. It's probably the first thing he'd ask anyways." Diana's feet touched the rooftop as she looked at Bruce lying on the floor staring in the direction that Jason disappeared in. "I found Dinah and Helena and got them to the cave, Alfred's tending to them now… they should be fine." Diana spoke in the most comforting tone she possibly could while disabling the net that trapped him. He didn't respond to anything, he didn't even get up after she freed him. "No response… normal… good, he's focusing." Diana carefully knelt beside him, placing her hand in his and waited.

Batman got up slowly, letting go of her hand as he moved to the edge of the roof. He continued to stare in the direction that Jason went as he planted his hands palms down onto the barrier. "He's either working with someone or for someone. Someone powerful enough to bring him back…or smart enough to find a way to do the same…"

Diana picked up the net and immediately recognized its Greek origins. Giving Batman a helpful clue that he didn't already know was always a good way to start a conversation. She slowly moved to Batman's side holding up the net between them. "The net… it's Greek… I fear that one of my enemies is helping him." She made sure not to look directly at him and kept her eyes on the net. Out of the corner of her eye she saw him turn his attention to her and then the net. Batman took the net from her hand and strapped it to his belt as she dropped her hand back to her side while pretending to look down at the streets of Gotham. Diana felt his eyes on her when he didn't return to his original position. She slowly turned to face him. Even with his cowl on, she could still see the pain in his eyes, she could feel it… Diana carefully inched closer to him, making sure not to set off any remaining defensive mechanisms that still might be working. Sensing it was safe to do so, she wrapped her arms around him as she placed her head on his shoulder.

He took in a deep breath as he held her in his arms. "I failed him…" Diana continued to hold him without saying a word. There was nothing she could say, it was a fact. He didn't save him.

Diana placed her arms around his neck as she looked into his eyes. She spoke slowly, being very careful with her choice of words. "You're not a failure. You're not because I believe in you, and I always will. You have always been able to overcome anything. This is no different… And right now I believe that you will overcome this and save Tim."

Batman slowly moved Diana's arms off of him before holding her left hand in his right. He glanced once more in the direction that Jason took off in before flying back to the cave with her.

"ALFRED!" Batman's eyes widened in horror as he saw him unconsciously lying on the floor, near the medical tables. The rest of the batclan were missing as both Diana and Bruce frantically searched the cave for any clues to explain what had happened. Anger boiled throughout Batman's veins as his rage took over. "JAAAASSSSSOOONNNN!"

Batman slammed his fists into the computer console, smashing it into pieces. Diana couldn't move. She was scared of him for the first time in her life. His rage… she's seen him beyond pissed off before, getting so very close to losing it, but to only watch him master his anger and force himself to think logically and rationally time and time again. Just like the time Joker shot Barbra, Batman almost gave in to his rage and nearly killed The Joker. Diana truly believed that if Bruce didn't lose his control then, there would be nothing that could ever make him give in. But here she was… watching him destroy his own computer in fear. Fear of what he was now capable of, of what he would do now that his rage gave the orders.

Bruce's control was the one thing she always relied on. That if anything were to happen, he would be the one to get everyone to focus on the task at hand. Diana was usually the one who gave in to her rage with Bruce being the one to calm her down. Sometimes Diana didn't know how Bruce was able to calm her down, but now she wished she knew… Diana was terrified and had no idea how to calm him down – not when he's like this.

"Master Bruce… forcing yourself to buy new equipment isn't going to help you find Master Dick and the others any faster." Alfred slowly stood up as he brushed off the bits of dust while straightening out his suit.

Heavily breathing, Bruce turned and glared at Alfred. Not affected by the glare, Alfred confidently walked up to him and spoke with a sense of disappointment and anger… both directed at Bruce. "I did not raise such a man to think with his fists, but with his head. You will do well to remember it, as I will not allow you to embarrass yourself in front of Mistress Diana." Alfred motioned towards Diana. She stared at him, still frozen by fear. Her eyes said it all as he looked into them.

Realizing what he had done… become… he collapsed to his knees looking down at the floor in shame. "I'm a failure…" Bruce ripped off his cowl and threw it at the ground, refusing to look at it.

Diana floated over to her husband and knelt beside him. She wrapped her arms around Bruce, holding him close. "You're not a failure Bruce…" she cupped his cheek with her hand, bringing his face to hers but he refused to look at her. "I love you. I won't allow you to fail."

Bruce took her hand off his face as he stood up and walked up to what was left of the computer and placed his hands on it. "I'm a failure… I'll eventually fail you just like I've failed the others. To be a part of my life is to live in constant pain and suffering. I should've never asked you to marry me. I should've never let you love me. I should've never let you into my world."

"NO! Don't you dare start pushing me away! NO BRUCE!" Diana knew Bruce was devastated. That he was broken down in an emotional wreck, but that didn't stop her anger from rising as fast as it did. She quickly walked up to him and spun him around to face her. "Look at me!"

Diana watched his eyes meet hers. The shame in Bruce's eyes disappeared as anger and disgust took over. "What kind of child gets his parents killed? What kind of man continuously lets a crazed psychopath terrorize a city? What kind of man allows a boy to enter his world? Place him in danger night after night. Give him insufficient training to fight the most dangerous of criminals. Allow that same psychotic killer capture and beat him down with a crowbar. To be so inefficient in tracking him down that the building explodes, killing the boy within it. To not put an end to his rein of terror. Allow him to hurt another again, gunning down a girl… paralyzing her from the waist down." Bruce's eyes narrowed as he spoke through his gritted teeth. "I failed. I failed to stop them from happening… all of which could have been easily avoided if I had worked alone."

"No Bruce… All of those things that have happened to you and the rest of us were NOT your failures. They were setbacks in life. Some more severe than others, but you always found a way to overcome them. You have endured more pain and suffering than anyone I know, and you have always came out standing tall. You believe that all these horrific and terrible things happen to you because you failed to stop them. But the truth is that all of these terrible things come to you because you're the best. You're better than everyone. They seek you out specifically because they know that if they can bring you down… there would be no one else to stop them." Diana placed both her hands on Bruce's chest, as her fingers ran along the bat symbol. "Please Bruce… we need you… I need you."

"Why?" Bruce looked into her eyes, seeing nothing but the warmth and love she had for him.

Diana smiled softly. "Because I love you. And I'll never allow you to fail, just like you have never allowed me to fail. I will always be by your side. That will never change." She moved her hands up crossing them behind his neck as she slowly brought herself closer and kissed him. "I love you too damn much."

"If I may interrupt Master Bruce, but I believe you have work to do." Alfred looked at Bruce with a sense of pride, knowing that he was back in his normal state of mind.

"Yes Alfred, thank you." Batman felt a presence within the cave. He knew someone was in there with the three of them. He quickly took out a bat-a-rang from his belt and threw it at the figure's head. Batman's eyes narrowed as the figure easily caught it before stepping out of the shadows near the far end of the cave.

"I see your sense of awareness is still among the best of even my assassins' detective." The man seemed to be in his late fifties, but very fit as his muscles were very noticeable. He was shirtless but had a green cape covering most of his body. His eyes were cold and dark and had the look of a ruthless killer.

"Ra's al Ghul" Now things were starting to make sense as Batman watched the assassin approach him.

"Contrary to what you might think detective… I've come here to ask of your assistance. One of my Lazarus Pits has been violated. The violators defeated my men by turning them into animals, and then used the pit to revive a boy back from the dead. I want their heads detective." Ra's clenched his fists in furry as both Batman and Diana eyes widened for an instant when he mentioned the word 'animals'.

"Circe!" Diana shouted in anger. "That witch! How did she escape prison again! I'll have her head for this!"

"You said violators… how many were there?" Batman asked, now wishing he hadn't destroyed his computer.

"From what my remaining men told me, there was a purple haired woman dressed in green, and a man in what looked like Greek armor with limitless power. Are they enemies of yours?" Ra's motioned towards Diana with a bit of resentment, he didn't see why Bruce had chosen this woman over his daughter Talia. As far as he was concerned, Talia was far more superior of a woman than this one standing before him.

Batman quickly took out the magical net that trapped him earlier and looked at it. "Diana, who has the power to possess an artifact like this?"

Diana took it from Batman's hand and analyzed it closely, seeing a symbol she'd recognize anywhere. "It was made by Hephaestus…this net was made to capture even the greatest of Gods in humiliation." The connection was all too easy, even for her. Diana's anger boiled throughout her veins while her nails dug deep into the palms of her hands as she clenched them in rage. "ARES!"

"A God is the source of this violation?" Ra's eyebrows arched up in surprise. "What have the both you done to anger The God of War?"

"Long story" Batman picked up his cowl and placed it back over his face.

"Maybe so detective… But even The League of Assassins dare not challenge the wrath of a God." Ra's turned to leave the cave. "But if you do manage to defeat The God of War… I would ask you to make his punishment worse than death."

After watching Ra's leave the cave Diana turned and followed Batman towards the batmobile. She instantly focused her thoughts on Circe as her anger stormed through her body. "Let's find that witch! I'll make her pay dearly for this!"

"Patience Princess… if we are to find and fight both Circe and Ares, we are going to need help." Batman quickly jumped into the driver's seat. "With our numbers down to two… there's only one available person left in Gotham who I trust to do what needs to be done my way."