XCIII
Soul Food
Flying sixty-thousand feet over the Atlantic in a Lockheed Martin SAI Quiet Supersonic Transport jet, Bruce Wayne quietly reflected upon the situation at hand. He understood that Trigon wanted him alive… otherwise he wouldn't be. That much was obvious. But why hadn't the demon simply snapped his fingers and made Bruce appear directly before him? Why speak to every human on the planet and try to turn the world against him? Was the demon simply exacting a measure of revenge for his marriage to Raven?
Trigon had made it painfully obvious that Raven's place was by her father's side. Yet he wanted Raven to make that decision herself, not to simply force her obedience with his seemingly unlimited power. She would need to sacrifice all that she held within her heart as a right of passage to enter into Trigon's malicious world. By doing so, she would identify with her father and fulfill her father's destiny.
Was that the flaw they needed? That Trigon wanted his daughter to validate his nature by becoming just like him? Or did he simply enjoy corrupting souls and Raven was a new challenge? What exactly did Raven mean to Trigon?...
Trigon's level of power was difficult to comprehend. It was like attempting to combine an infinite series in calculus to a religious doctrine. Was his power one that allowed him to create life, or simply destroy it? Through deception, he had physically sired Raven with Arella, so it was safe to say that his ability to create life was… limited. Otherwise, he could have created an army of his own children by will alone.
The Nebu were also pre-existing. He had not created them. He had simply enlisted the soul-eating demons. Another example that Trigon could not create life. And if he had spawned those things, Bruce would have hated to have seen the mother…
It was also a fair assumption to believe that Raven shared the traits of her father, including his powers. She was an empath. Trigon was an empath. Except the demon was much more powerful… Able to receive, influence, warp, twist and project emotions across an entire world, or - more likely - dimensions. Gods and demons in mythology had been linked to human emotions throughout history. Did negative emotion fuel Trigon in some way?...
Which brought Bruce to Trigon's origin… Raven had said that Azar believed Trigon was a collection of the thousand dark halves of the souls of Azarath. But souls didn't copulate with women to produce such beautiful offspring. Which meant that Trigon was a physical being.
He did consume souls... The one thousand dark halves of the Azarathian souls had no doubt been taken by Trigon, but the demon certainly existed before those spiritual fragments were ever cast through the Great Door of Azarath.
Bruce recalled the old stories of Christ and the Devil and the battle for human souls. Pint-sized demons whispering in one ear and tiny angels at the other, trying to influence the actions of humanity for good or for evil. But unless you were reading the last chapter of the Bible, the Devil wasn't supposed to pop in on the world and instantly send six-and-half-million people to the moon...
Another similarity to Raven… His wife could transport herself and others throughout the span of the Universe. Her father also seemed to have this ability, but again on a much larger scale. Bruce wondered if Trigon had traveled to the moon for a millisecond with all the people of Bialya in tow and simply teleported only himself back. He would have to analyze the video in very slow motion.
And Raven could hold souls… She currently carried the entire spiritual existence of Azarath inside her. Is this what Trigon did with souls as well? Had he found some way to draw power from the souls that he consumed? Did he metabolize them in some way? If Bruce could figure that one out, he would have the key to defeating his incredibly dangerous father-in-law.
For this, he needed Raven's and Azar's expertise on the physics of the soul. Talia may also be able to assist… A quick shudder from the seat across him meant that his recovering guest would be coming to shortly and he would ask her then. The attending physician beside her gave him a thumbs up when monitoring her readings. They had another four hours before arrival and he still had two calls to make before she woke up…
His first call was to Tim and Fritz. They had recalculated the trajectory of the Tachyon Cannon around the sun and had Trigon's every movement instantly uploaded by GPS positioning. They had also coded the discharge signal to the panic button he carried in his cufflink… he could fire when ready. Raven couldn't travel in the past and Bruce prayed that Trigon had no power over the past as well.
The GPS and panic signal travel distance to the satellite knocked half-a-second off the beam's strike time. It would hit Trigon 3.5 seconds into the past. Hopefully that would be long enough. He doubted a simple blast from a Tachyon Cannon would be enough to stop Trigon, but there was the possibility that he could use it as a reset button during the approaching battle.
He then took a moment to call Alfred. There was something he had to say to his oldest and truest friend, something he should have said long ago…
"Master Bruce! How wonderful to hear from you sir… I'm afraid I may be suffering from the onset of mental instability... There was a voice that spoke with an Estuary dialect all throughout the manor an hour ago. And it said it wanted you, sir. And Mrs. Wayne, and her mother…"
"That was Trigon, Alfred. He was speaking to everyone on the planet simultaneously. I'm just on my way to meet him. Alfred… I wanted to thank you for everything that you have done for me… over my entire life. I took you for granted far too often. You've always been there and never complained, even when you had every right to do so. I also wanted to thank you for your acceptance of Raven into our home… That really meant a lot to me."
"My pleasure, sir. It is true happiness for me to see you with someone you love and who loves you in return with such devotion. And while you both have demons from your past, you support one another to rise above them. I have the utmost faith that the both of you will prevail, Master Bruce."
"Thank you, Alfred. I hope we will."
"Master Bruce… I also have a confession… I wanted you to find out from me before you had a look at the financials… I'm afraid I've leveraged a great deal of our holdings for a twenty-nine million dollar loan…"
"With our current share price, I'm not sure we'll be able to pay that back. I would hate to have to sell the estate."
"That's just it, sir. With Wayne Industries falling so low, I had to save what both your parents and yourself had worked so hard for… Anyone could have bought the company at that ridiculous share price, and I couldn't bear to see that… so I purchased ninety million shares so that you wouldn't lose control of the company bearing your family name. I should have cleared it with you first, sir and I sincerely apologize."
"Alfred, if we survive this, I'm going to kiss you!"
"Thank you sir, but I believe Mrs. Wayne would appreciate that sort of attention much more than I, - but I am happy to see that you approve of our purchase."
"Very happy. You're going to be the richest butler on the planet."
"I said our, sir."
"Your purchase… If we survive, I will be retiring as president of Wayne Industries."
"…What shall you do, sir?"
"Lois Lane had a vision. I'd like to see it come to fruition… I think it's time we took our place in the Universe. I'm not sure what the world will look like tomorrow, but I think our eyes will be upon the stars."
"Perhaps our thoughts should first be upon the love of our neighbor, sir... Love is the voice under all silences, the hope which has no opposite in fear; the strength so strong mere force is feebleness: the truth more first than sun, more last than star..."
"…Cummings?"
"You know me too well, master Bruce."
"And I see your point, old friend. Humanity must come together if we are to finally take our place among the stars. You truly are the best man I know."
"Then you do not know yourself, sir. But thank you. And remember, with Mrs. Wayne you are even greater still…"
"The hope which has no opposite in fear. I will remember that. See you later, Alfred."
"I shall see you again. Godspeed, master Bruce."
After the call to Alfred, Bruce remembered to eat. The appearance of Alfred always reminded him to eat. Bruce was more the type to be consumed by his latest project than someone who remembered to eat, leaving it to Alfred.
The attendant brought him salmon croquette, southern biscuits with a heaping portion of baked macaroni and cheese. This could be his last chance to eat, cholesterol be damned…
"Mmmnnnn…" Talia was starting to come to.
"Welcome back."
"Bruce?... that smells good. I think it woke me up…" Bruce signaled the attendant for another serving of his dish and water for Talia. It was strange to think that at the end of the world, they would be having soul food.
"How are you feeling, Talia?"
"Fuzzy… And pleased that I was able to save my body. Georgia Sivana is not a pretty sight on the inside either."
"She's been retained at the Pentagon. We're on a flight to Kahndaq. Trigon has requested my presence."
"I thought that was a dream… I'm worried about my father, Bruce. I believe Trigon was only using him to gain access to this world."
"That makes two of us. Trigon tried to use me and almost succeeded. Raven helped me so that I didn't initiate the engine of destruction upon Kahndaq, but I believe the League of Assassins was the back-up plan if I did not."
"Death has always been their plan."
"But I assume it's controlled death. Surely your father does not want to wipe out the entire human population?"
"No. My father plans for a world where only his followers survive. To build a new Eden… The League is much more than just assassins… It is scientists, doctors, farmers and some of the most powerful people in the world. One hundred and forty-four thousand members." Talia was grateful for the water that arrived from the attendant.
"And Trigon was the means to that end?"
"He believed so. He had learned of the fallen angel who had visited the Earth in your city near the turn of the millennium and based his research upon that. He believes that was when Raven was conceived. She appears about twenty-one…"
"Yes, she was. Her pregnant mother was transported to the extra-dimensional real of Azarath where Raven was born and raised, learning to embrace her human side and control her demon nature."
"How strange… Azarath was my father's kingdom from one thousand years ago. His wife Zara, bearing his child, transported all the lands and peoples to another dimension to walk in the ways of peace. My father was left behind so Zara's authority would be unquestioned."
"I am not familiar with Zara…"
"You know her by another name… The name she took from the birth of their child… Azar."
"… That would make Ra's one thousand years old."
"His spirit is that old. A consciousness untouched by the Stygian waters of the afterlife retaining all memories and emotions."
"I need to ask you, Talia… What do you know about Trigon? Do you know what he does with the souls he consumes?"
"Very little. It is my father's astral form that had to travel beyond the soul barrier to commune with the dark angel... I am sorry Bruce Wayne, I know nothing certain of the entity we face."
"You do not need to face Trigon, Talia."
"Then I need to face my father. I should have done this long ago."
"He has taken a new body… The Kryptonian, Big Blue. I would like to get the original owner back into that body as soon as possible. He will be an ally against Trigon."
"I will do what I can…"
Talia's food arrived. Bruce had no idea if Talia would be able to sway her father - the powerful Ra's al Ghul - but they needed all the help in the Universe.
Again, he thought of his wife…
Next Chapter: Trigon's true origin revealed! Don't miss it!