Note: My apologies for not posting yesterday. RL unexpectedly came and took over my life for the day and it totally slipped my mind.
A Better World
The portal is where they left it. Bruce stands in front of it. The others are coming, bringing the powerless Justice Lords to return them to their home.
Bruce knows his counterpart is waiting. He knows he's not going to have an easy time of it in the coming days.
He isn't sure what prompted him to record the battle. Bruce looks at the disk in his hands. Maybe it's how his counterpart reacted to Flash. Kent's counterpart nearly killed the kid.
Knowledge is power. His counterpart should know how far his Kent had fallen. Bruce tosses the disk through the portal.
Diana stares at this… thing, in front of her. It is like looking into a twisted mirror. Her eyes, her features, her physique are identical, but the differences are disturbing. It is not so much the hairstyle, as it is the emotion that swirls in those eyes.
Hatred. Rage. Judgment. Justification.
Diana is sickened, and refuses to consider any further connection between them. This woman is an insult to everything Diana fights for, everything an Amazon stands for.
"Athena took back the armor, didn't she?"
The woman snarls at her, but does not reply. That is answer enough. Diana shoves her through the portal.
"God only knows how many people you've sentenced to death, you fool," he shouts, his eyes filled with unholy fanaticism. "You can't let him go!"
Clark does his best to ignore him. The man's been spouting it all ever since he'd told him about Luthor's pardon. Clark isn't a fool. He knows Luthor's pardon will come back to haunt them. He's accepted that, and he promises himself that he'll do whatever he can – within reason – to prevent more deaths.
"You're the one who set this whole thing in motion," Clark snaps harshly. "Blame yourself." Clark shoves him through the portal.
J'onn is glad for the silence. His battle with his counterpart had been mental and physical. It had been difficult, fighting someone who knew his every defense. After Luthor's power disruptor drained his counterpart, J'onn had been left to the silence.
The other says nothing out loud, but J'onn has eyes. He sees the coiled rage that still remains in him.
"Why?" It is a simple question.
"The humans needed to be strengthened if they were to survive," he replies tersely. "Their petty squabbling had to be dealt with."
"By depriving them of that which makes them great?" J'onn shoves him through the portal.
John doesn't bother being gentle with his counterpart. The man is a disgrace to the Marines and the Green Lantern Corps. Both instilled honor in him, and seeing that broken is a revolting sight.
What gets him though, is remembering seeing Hawkgirl lying on that bed, unconscious. This bastard put her there, and John wants to take it out of his hide.
"Any parting, judgmental remarks?" his counterpart sneers.
John wants to punch his face in. Instead, he says, "You already know what I'll say. If those words mean nothing to you, then you really are lost." John shoves him through the portal.
The whole experience has been … surreal, for Wally. Seeing how these people, who look and sound just like his friends, behave is not pleasant. Supes was actually going to kill him. GL almost killed Hawkgirl. They lobotomized criminals with Supes' heat vision.
Some lines should never be crossed. These people didn't just cross them, they bulldozed them.
Hawkgirl is quiet as he leads her towards the portal. She keeps looking at him like he's a burning photograph.
She breathes, "It was… good to see you again, Flash. I'm… sorry."
He finds himself believing her. "I know." Wally pushes her gently through the portal.