Justice League Past Imperfect 53
The time bubble exited the time vortex and appeared in the Bat Cave of the 22nd Century. Terry stepped out, "Doesn't this thing go anywhere else?"
"I was following Brainiac's time beacon signal." Seeing Terry's lack of understanding Cosmic Boy elaborated, "He has to fix his location in time with a beacon in order to receive Vandal Savage's return signals. It's pretty advanced stuff. I'm surprised this Brainiac has the knowledge to build one. After all, Luthor…"
"Wiped my personality matrix and erased a good deal of my database." Brainiac said as he emerged from the shadows, "Indeed. But what Luthor was unaware of is that I am very resilient. It took over a century to retrieve my back-up files from Apokolips but I eventually managed it and now I am restored."
"Not for long." Cosmic Boy declared as he called upon his magnetic powers. Magnetic fields in the cave shifted as he sought weapons to bear. Brainiac ended his search by blasting him with an electro blast.
"Try this, twip!" Terry yelled as he engaged his suit's thrusters. He flew directly into Brainiac and began pounding on the AI with his fists. Brainiac was staggered by the onslaught and he gave ground.
Meanwhile Wayne ascended the stairs and entered the Manor. He quietly moved through the spaces until he came upon an armored Batman standing guard over an elderly Terry and Dana. A younger woman was present as well.
Terry caught Wayne's eye and flicked his gaze towards the armored figure's right gauntlet. A computer interface was exposed and it showed a red warning light.
Wayne crept up behind this generation's Batman and raised his cane. He brought it down on the exposed panel. It turned green and the figure in the armor was released from Brainiac's control.
"Thanks Old Man." Terry chuckled, "We installed that reset in case of a hostile takeover of the suit's systems but Brainiac moved so fast no one had time to trigger it."
"Granddad, who is this?" Batman suddenly asked.
"Jason, this is your great-grandpa." Terry announced, "Jason, Cassandra, meet Bruce Wayne."
"So you're the first Batman?" Cassandra asked with awe in her voice.
"Yes." Wayne replied, "I take it you're Batgirl."
"Exactly." She grinned.
The clock-door exploded outwards as Terry sailed through it. Brainiac hovered on through entrance. He saw that Batman IV was freed and he petulantly declared, "It seems Mr. Wayne that I shall have to permanently delete you."
Brainiac fired a concussion blast that struck the armored Batman in the chest and sent him flying through the living room window. He then wheeled on Wayne and the McGuiness family.
Wayne and the elderly Terry put themselves in harm's way. Brainiac shook his head and his wrist blasters hummed to life. A vibration passed through his endoskeleton and he frowned. The very next second, Brainiac exploded into a few thousand pieces…all hovering in mid-air.
From the doorway to the Bat Cave, Cosmic Boy was grinning; "Anybody miss me?"
"Who's that?" Cassandra asked.
"That's Cosmic Boy." Dana answered, "He's from the future."
"He's cute." Cassandra opined.
"Did I mention that he's from the future?" Danan wondered aloud.
"Do you honestly think she's going to listen?" the older Terry remarked.
The repartee was interrupted by sparks and crackles of energy from the disparate parts of Brainiac. Cos shouted, "We need to remove the power core and destroy it. Otherwise he'll just reassemble. I can't hold him indefinitely."
"Leave it to me." Batman Beyond said as he activated his thrusters and glider wings. He sailed up from the floor through the center of Brainiac's mass, taking hold of the core. Cradling it in his arms he sailed out the broken window and into the sky. Once he flown as high as the thrusters would allow, he attached a bat bomb to the core and set the timer for a few seconds. He then dropped the core.
It fell one hundred feet and detonated. Terry's eye lenses automatically went opaque to shield him from the brilliance. When all of the energy from the blast had dissipated he returned to the manor.
He stepped through the shattered window only find everyone but Wayne and Cosmic Boy had disappeared. He was disgruntled, "What gives? They took off like I had rabies or something."
"It's not good to know too much of your own future." Wayne replied.
"You just gave your past self a whole preview of his future." Terry pointed out.
"I won't have once Saturn Girl does her work." Wayne said.
"Who?" Terry was confused.
"She's one of my associates." Cosmic Boy revealed, "She'll 'fix' Batman's memory once his current crisis ends."
"But it does end, right?" Terry asked.
"I don't know." Cos answered, "The Gordonian invasion isn't a fixed point in history. It can go either way."
"Meaning?" Terry demanded.
"Meaning we may not have a past to go back to or Cosmic Boy a future to return to." Wayne gravely explained.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Terry grew desperate, "Let's get going to our own time and then see if we need to go back and kick Vandal Savage's butt!"
"Well, you know where the time bubble is." Cosmic Boy replied, "So let's get going."
"You two go ahead." Wayne instructed them, "I'll be along in a moment."
"What're you up to?" Terry asked.
"Nothing of consequence." Wayne replied, "Go. I won't be five minutes."
Terry resisted but Cosmic Boy rested a hand on his shoulder, "It's all right. I know what he has in mind, and like he said, it's harmless."
The elderly Terry and Dana emerged from the master bedroom and crept downstairs. Modern medicine had done wonders to the human condition and although they were in their seventies they felt decades younger. What was about to transpire was the answering of a fifty year old mystery: what had Bruce Wayne done in his moments alone in the Wayne Manor of the 22nd Century?
Terry immediately saw the note on the table in the formal dining room. He snatched it up and read:
Dear Terry,
I know it will have seemed like years before you finally receive this and it really will have been. I felt the need to finally tell you, in a way I can't do in my time, to tell you how proud I am of you and of how grateful I am that you came into my life. You have not only made the Batman legacy live on but in a very real way, you've carried on the Wayne legacy.
I know that genetically you're my son but genetics don't take away the fact that I'm not your real father. Your father, if he were alive, would stand tall and proud to call you his son. He would admire your moral convictions and your courage in living up to them. That, beyond all else, is what a father passes to his son and he did an amazing job.
I look at you and I see the son I could have had if I'd spent more time pursuing a normal life rather than wholly becoming Batman. Barbara said I was throwing away a part of my life I couldn't afford to lose. I did and then she left as well.
You've become my heir in more ways than Dick or Tim ever did. I never gave Dick the chance to and Tim never had the time to before the Joker snatched him away. I kept them at a distance. With you, it was different. I truly saw you as a successor and that made the real difference.
What I'm awkwardly trying to say is that I love you. I don't think I'll ever manage to say it in person so I've opted for the coward's way out. For the first time, Batman is too afraid to face his foe. Ironic isn't it?
I see that you've done well for yourself and that Batman is still a part of your life. I wish you well in all of that. I'm happiest to see that Dana is still by your side and that Batman didn't tear you apart. I look forward to sharing what little of your lives that I can.
Love,
Bruce
Terry openly wept upon reading the letter. He handed it to Dana and she read it as well. She wrapped her arms around him and he reflexively held her. Together they shared the resolution to the mystery that had been Bruce Wayne and Terry vowed to keep the family first in his life.
The Gordonian battlecruiser emerged out of hyperspace just beyond the Moon and began its march towards Earth. As it prepared to slide into Earth orbit, it charged its neutron cannon and destroyed the Watchtower. Debris from the explosion knocked out dozens of other satellites. Telecommunications across the globe ceased to exist. The sky was aflame from falling pieces of the station and the satellites burning up reentering the atmosphere.
Next the cruiser disembarked fifty-two support craft. These saucers began their own controlled entry into Earth's atmosphere. However, two of the craft broke free of the main body. While the main contingent headed for Kaznian skies, the other two's destinations were unknown to human imagination.
J'onn led his detachment towards Kaznian airspace. Superman called him through J'onn's bluetoothed signal device, "Two of the saucers have broken off. Do you want me to follow them?"
"Negative." J'onn replied, "I'll send Red Tornado and the Ray after them."
"Sounds like a plan." Superman conceded.
The other two JLers were more than happy to chase down what could amount to threats against civilians. Since Red Tornado flew at subsonic speeds, they would have to rely upon the US's NORAD facility and then Russia's Rocket Forces and China's Missile Command to track the two errant ships. They just hoped that they wouldn't arrive too late.
"Give me your hand." The Ray ordered.
Red Tornado complied without hesitation. The Ray grabbed hold of the android's wrist and used his own ability to fly at near light speeds to boost their combined airspeed to mach 3. If the Red Tornado had been capable of smiling, he would have been grinning ear to ear. He made a mental note to himself to ask Kilowog about the feasibility of installing a more articulate mouthpiece.
Captain Marvel, Mary Marvel, Black Adam, and Aztek flew into Kaznia. They maintained their speed of mach 10. The javelins, however, slowed to mach 5. Between their velocity, their ECM packages, and their countermeasures, they evaded every missile that the Kaznians unleashed.
In Savage's command post within the rebuilt royal castle, the country's supreme ruler shifted uneasily, "I don't like this Ares. The people are growing restless. This strike by the JLers and the Legionnaires could tip the balance of popular opinion towards the rebellion. If they were to find out that Audrey is still alive…"
"Rest easy, Vandal Savage." Ares assured him, "Your former bride is safely out of your way. Charon has carried her across to Hades' realm. Although she is still flesh and blood his power holds sway over her. His only fear is that Princess Diana or Zeus may discover her fate."
"Yes, the Amazon is a rather painful thorn is the side." Savage grated, "But that is why you and your forces are arrayed. Diana will undoubtedly be amongst those coming, especially knowing of your involvement. You can smite her before she becomes a problem."
"That is the confidence I respect you for." Ares' voice rumbled from deep within his armor, "It is why I agreed to ally myself with you. I see vestiges of myself within you, Savage. We can truly remake this world. You will be its immortal ruler and I shall be its immortal god. From here, we can launch a crusade against a thousand world, especially against these so-called 'New Gods'."
"Sounds fruitful." Savage opined, "I look forward to expelling this reptilian scum and carrying forth with our real goals."
"Remember the prize and the goal will be won." Ares counseled, "I go now to gather my cadre. We shall return before you fall and the tide will be turned."
Ares became a ball of light and that too faded. Savage returned his attention to his redeployment of his forces. The armored divisions were patrolling the castle grounds and the nearby capitol. His helicopter wings were en route to safeguard the castle and the Kaznian air force was flying high to meet and escort the Gordonian support craft back to his base. He could only hope that his instructions regarding two of their craft had been carried out. Their missions would give the League pause.