LXVII
Point vs. Point… Live at the Wayne Funeral!
(Author's Note: Readers of Frank Millers "The Dark Knight Returns" may recognize the 'Point vs. Point' title where an older Lana Lang and a man named Morrie debate the ethical and societal implications of the return of the Batman…
Seems they exist in my Alternate Universe as well. )
And we're on in… 5 , 4, 3, …, …
"Good morning everyone, and welcome to a special edition Gotham's foremost editorial watch, Point vs. Point. I'm Lana Lang and this is Morrie Schaeffer. Today, we're hoping to bring you breaking news…"
"Since when is a funeral 'breaking' news, Lana? Let's face facts… the only reason that we're here is because this is billionaire Bruce Wayne's event and it's a slow news day. I'm sure this will be running 24/7 on Wayne Net News…"
"…As I was saying Morrie, there are rumors that something big may be going down this morning involving President Luthor…."
"What… that he'll be taking control of Wayne Industries for the country's military requirements? Hardly news Lana, just a question of when. Luthor won, Wayne loses. Politics always trumps business."
"In the fascist world where you live Morrie, yes it does. Sources close to the action say there's a military build-up like none Gotham has ever witnessed! And the army just keeps arriving. We're going to see just how far president Luthor has gone. We've got cameras in place around Gotham Towers, home to Wayne Industries and Wayne Communications. Let's go live there now to Summer who's on the scene."
"Good morning, Lana and Morrie. This is special correspondent Summer Gleeson LIVE at the site of the Wayne funeral, nestled between stately Gotham towers, scheduled to begin shortly. Right now however, I feel like it's a war zone! There are troops everywhere!
"Whoa… That's some impressive military hardware! Tanks, rocket launchers, army snipers... They've set up a cordon. You're right Lana, we may see some real fireworks here. Surely Wayne wouldn't be stupid enough to resist America in her time of need. You can't say no to Lex Luthor..."
"Let's not jump to conclusions yet, Morrie. What's that? Sorry folks, we have to stop for a brief commercial break, but we'll keep you up to date on these late breaking developments as soon as we're back!"
After breakfast, the hired car had picked up Bruce, Alfred, Raven and Arella. It had been one of only two instances in his long life where Alfred had been chauffeured. The first time had been the co-funeral of Thomas and Martha Wayne. Even though he protested at first, Alfred was glad that Bruce had insisted that he remain a passenger today. There were too many memories, too many regrets to get through and still be responsible for the safety of his family.
The morning was overcast, but so far, mercifully dry. The funeral itself was to take place in the courtyard between the Wayne Industries tower and the Wayne Communications tower, the heart of Bruce's business empire.
Nearing the grounds, Bruce was alarmed at the amount of traffic congestion on a Saturday morning, slowing the drive downtown. Had there been an accident? Slowly, the car inched forward to be stopped by a… check stop? Manned by the military? As they approached the towers, the entire area was being swarmed with armed forces activity. It became painfully apparent that a perimeter was being established around Gotham towers.
And that could only mean one thing…
Luthor.
Dozens of army vehicles lined the streets around Wayne Industries. Tanks and rocket launchers filled the roadway while soldiers guarded the vicinity. Getting out of the car, and being ID'ed once more, Bruce scanned the area and finally spotted Lucius talking to someone in the back of a large, black limousine.
"Excuse me everyone, I'm just going to see what's going on. It looks like we may need to put those evacuation plans into play. Raven. I'm counting on you. " Bruce hurried over to Lucius and noticed that Raven was three steps behind him. She wasn't letting him out of her sight. As he strode closer to Lucius, he noticed the worried look of concern on his old friend's face.
"Lucius… Please don't tell me that bastard is going to raid our offices now while the funeral is being held..."
"I won't tell you that, Mr. Wayne. But perhaps you should ask him yourself." Lucius jabbed a finger towards the back seat.
Bruce looked through the open window to see Lex Luthor sitting far too comfortably in the back seat. Beside him was a… stunning woman with almond-brown eyes whose face was concealed by a niqab1. There was something almost… familiar about her. Even so, he had no intentions of letting Luthor disrespect Richard's memory like this.
"You've got a lot of nerve showing up here now, Luthor! Show some respect."
"I intend to, Mr. Wayne. That is why I am here, to pay my respects to Captain Richard Grayson. To set the record straight."
"You're trespassing."
"We're all trespassing, Mr. Wayne. The truth will be known."
"The truth is known, Luthor. I know exactly who gave that bomb to the Kahndaqi government and why." Wayne made no attempt to hide the anger in his voice. This was low, even for Luthor.
"It's time the world knew as well… I apologize for the extra… attention, it seems to follow me wherever I go these days. I will speak after you, Mr. Wayne. My sympathies for your loss." The back window rolled up with Bruce wanting to put his fist through the glass and his fingers around the throat of Lex Luthor. He had no idea what the madman was playing at…
"What's going on, Lucius?"
"No idea, Mr. Wayne. The army began arriving here an hour ago and wouldn't say why. And they just kept on coming. No one's returning my calls. Now the press are streaming in. Are you going to let him speak?"
"Do I have a choice?"
Bruce looked around at the tanks and anti-aircraft weaponry. On the rooftops he saw army sharpshooters. And then amongst the military siege, the members of the press were now angling for positions between soldiers. This was turning into a fiasco. As he began walking back to the others, Raven took his hand.
"Who was the woman with Luthor?" His wife asked.
"I don't know, I never asked. I never took him for the Middle Eastern type though."
"There's something strange about her, my love."
"Yes, I felt it too."
"No dearest, you felt something entirely different." She squeezed his hand a little tighter.
"Ahem… But it was strange. Luthor has never trusted anyone, especially foreigners. I've never even seen him with a woman before. And I'm positive it wasn't someone connected to Wayne Industries."
"Be careful of her, my love. Something isn't right here."
"No… it's not."
"…And welcome back to Point vs. Point! We've just watched Bruce Wayne and party arrive. Wayne, and another young lady, have gone over to a separate limo, spoken to Lucius Fox, CEO of Wayne Industries and are now proceeding to their front row seats."
"Did you see the black suits surrounding that limo, Lana? Could it be the mayor? The governor? My guess is that Wayne just got handed his federal summons!"
"Due process in this day and age, Morrie? Whatever it was, it seems the military is letting the funeral proceed according to plan… for now. Guests are arriving and being seated. More media is arriving, but remember folks, you saw it here first!"
"Hey, who's that girl with Wayne?... Summer, can you get closer?"
"You bet, Morrie. Let's get a close up... She looks to be around eighteen. We know Barbara Gordon is in attendance, but it's this girl that seems to be on Wayne's arm. Can we focus in on her hands?… Two rings, one on each ring finger… And those stones are huge! We know Wayne's been wearing a ring for a year. Could this be his mysterious bride?!"
"Wife, girlfriend, escort, who knows, who cares?... Spend it while you can, Wayne… I have the feeling that LexCorp is now entering into Mergers and Acquisitions at bargain basement prices and Wayne's stock is dropping to zero."
"Hold on Morrie and Summer… is that Cardinal Panessa arriving?... Yes, we have confirmation. Wayne's sparing no expenses today, he's brought out the holy leader of Gotham's catholic community. As many of you know, Captain Richard Grayson was Bruce Wayne's ward…What's that? I'm sorry everyone, we have another commercial break, but stick with us for more breaking developments…"
Alfred, Arella, Bruce and Raven found their seats through the sudden crowd of strangers. Barbara Gordon was a welcome sight amongst the invading army. She had done a wonderful job on her makeup, but could not conceal the puffiness under her sad eyes. Bruce had long suspected that she had harbored a crush on his ward and - truth be told, Richard was fond of her as well. He had been taken from them far too soon.
Glancing around those already in attendance, Bruce was happy to see a number of Air Force officers who had worked with Richard. He was surprised to see that General Johnson was also present, likely for the post-funeral event as he had the most inside knowledge of Wayne Industries among army brass. Wayne had little doubt now that both he and Lucius would be indicted as criminals by the president's men and Wayne Industries would be seized by the military. He quietly whispered to his wife.
"Be ready to get us out of here quickly… like we planned. They'll probably arrest Lucius and I when Luthor speaks."
"Shall I take the president as well?" Her husband often forgot exactly what she was capable of.
"Oh yes… I'm going to personally kick his ass… for Richard. "
1. A niqab is the cloth which covers the face as part of the hijab, usually worn by Muslim women in public.