CLIX
A City Asleep
As he watched the late morning sun shine through the hospital suite's window onto the crisp, white bedcovers that covered a man he regarded more as a son than an employer, Alfred Pennyworth sat silently waiting. Bruce was thankfully still unconscious, having succumbed to the sedatives more than three hours ago, while a team of specialists had only just finished running tests and taking blood samples after some very tense and unexpected developments.
And yet this was the hardest part.
Waiting.
Alfred was relieved to finally have a chair under him. The strange events of the morning had left him understandably shaken. The unexpected shock of the mild tremors and then the entire hospital glowing with green energy had created a state of emergency in Gotham General, and the old man had tried to remain by Bruce's side the whole time.
Earthquakes were rare in Gotham city, and he supposed that it was fortunate that it had been only minor tremors, that the damage had only been cosmetic – but it had certainly caused an amazing amount of anxiety at the time.
Doctors, nurses and aids had all braced themselves when the first shocks hit, causing a thousand alarms to go off both inside and outside of the hospital. Panic quickly ensued. Mercifully, an unconscious Bruce was only being prepared for a CAT scan - and not under the surgeon's knife when the first quakes hit. The hospital staff had only just hastily initiated emergency disaster protocols when the next cataclysmic event happened…
The world went green.
And everyone just… stopped.
The world stopped.
Everything around them emanated a glowing green energy.
And no one knew what to do about it.
Alfred heard the prayers, the screams, the crying and the shouts around him, but none of it really mattered anymore. The familiar world they shared had just been broken by some force beyond their control, and it wasn't going to work for them anymore.
They were in an emerald unreality.
And then, after a surreal moment indelibly written into his memory, it all came back… the colours of their world returned to them. Surely they had experienced something they were never meant to know in their lifetime, something that was bigger than all of them combined. Something that could end everything they ever knew... and it had just been averted.
And now they were just supposed to return to normal.
Alfred said a prayer for someone he regarded as a daughter just then. Someone who had taken her wounded husband's place to bravely face the monster at the end of the world. A woman who must have saved them all...
A quiet knock at the door broke Alfred's revelries and reflections of the morning, suddenly returning him to the present. How very strange… The hospital staff would surely never knock… So who could this be?
Alfred was surprised to see a dishevelled Commissioner James Gordon silently step into the room, carefully closing the door so as to not wake Bruce. The long-standing Commissioner of the Gotham City Police Department then walked over to Alfred to shake his hand in way of greeting.
"Ah, Mr. Pennyworth, wasn't it?… How is Bruce?"
"So far, so good Commissioner. We're just awaiting the results of the tests while he sleeps off the sedatives. It's been a very… disruptive week. I'm actually quite glad to see him get some rest."
"Disruptive is a polite way to put it… My God, was it only a week ago that I was delivering a speech in poor Bruce's honour for his contributions to the GCPD?… And now it seems the whole damned world went to Hell in a hand basket in the meantime."
"So it would seem, Commissioner… but I sincerely believe we have just turned the corner. Forgive me, but if I may be so bold to ask, is this visit of a personal nature, or…?"
"More or less. Happened to be in the neighbourhood… Actually, they sent me here last night… Just after I collapsed while barking some orders to my idiot recruits."
"Oh my, I hope everything is alright, Commissioner?"
"I'm fine. I don't need a doctor to tell me what exhaustion is… A man who hasn't slept in four days with the weight of a city on his shoulders is bound to stumble. But he has to get back up… The whole city has gone mad with this damned Kahndaq business… But I actually did have another reason for coming here, Mr. Pennyworth. I was hoping to talk with Bruce… at least before the Secret Service arrived… to inquire about Barbara.
I know she's all over the news right now, in the middle of this whole alien war in Kahndaq… She's some kind of 'green hero' they tell me. Saved us all… But I was hoping Bruce could update me on what's really going on and... maybe where she is. I know he was there too… and I know it got bad for all of them.
I guess you could say I'm here as a father, Mr. Pennyworth. She has no fear, my little girl. I thanked my lucky stars when she didn't take after her old man and become a cop. She's always been a hellion and a strain on this old man's heart… But I couldn't bear to see her hurt.
God knows, every time I close my eyes, I just keep seeing my little Barbara lying dead on those sands of Kahndaq, just staring back at me with those big, blue eyes. I know it can't be true, but… Please, I just need someone to tell me she's still alive, that's all…"
"Barbara is alive, James Gordon."
The female voice behind him and the gentle hand that suddenly rested on the shoulder of Commissioner Gordon's ragged overcoat almost caused him to jump six inches. He knew damned well his heart had skipped at least one beat. Ten years ago, that wouldn't have happened. Damn, he must have been tired to let someone sneak up on him like that!
Turning around, he saw the mysterious young lady he had first seen on the news at Richard Grayson's funeral… A dark-haired woman about Barbara's size and a few years younger. He remembered that the reporters had introduced her as Bruce Wayne's secret wife.
A wife he had believed was fictitious until only two days ago. God, she looked like a…
"Yes, I am younger than most would expect, Commissioner."
Had it been that obvious? She had a nice smile though… and alluring, violet eyes. He had never seen eyes quite like those. Bruce was a wealthy man and she was young and attractive… but also confident, powerful and foreign.
"Sorry… You startled me, Mrs. Wayne."
"My apologies, Commissioner. I'm also Barbara's very close friend. I can assure you she is well."
"Strange… She never mentioned you."
"It is a very recent friendship. We are allies. Your daughter is a remarkable woman."
"Yes… Yes she is. Do you know where is she now, Mrs. Wayne?"
"On the island of Themyscira as an honoured guest."
Alfred approached her… no longer able withhold himself and then embraced Raven. The morning had not been easy for him.
"Forgive an old man's sentimentality, Commissioner… It's just so wonderful to see her once more. I had thought the world was lost for a moment. It's so good to have you back, Mrs. Wayne."
Alfred couldn't help but notice that Raven seemed… taller. He was sure of it. Had she grown since yesterday? Nevertheless, it was Raven and when she smiled warmly back at him, the old man knew that everything was right with the world once more.
His family had returned from the war.
"The threat has passed, Alfred. We've won for now. Life returns…"
James Gordon breathed a sigh of relief… but there was still deep-rooted tension twisting tourniquets into his shoulders. He would have to take Raven Wayne's word that Barbara was alright (even if he had never heard of an island called Themyscira), but that didn't mean that Gotham was alright…
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Wayne… But for your own safety, you must be aware that we're still in a city-wide emergency. As of this morning, thousands of people are rioting in the streets, looting anything they can get their hands onto… And this whole Gotham-turning-green thing is only going to make matters worse. If you travel outside, my officers can't assure your safety. It would be better if you stayed here."
"It's been very hard for the Police."
"Yes. We've been calling on people to remain calm and return to their homes for three days now… They just don't seem to be listening to us anymore. Both the army and my department are stretched to capacity, so please, for your own safety… stay here."
"I would like you to accompany me when I return to Barbara, Commissioner. I believe she would you dearly like you to meet someone… And I have another reason. She won't be as upset with me if you're there."
"Trust me Mrs. Wayne, I'd love to see Barbara, but every airport in the area is closed… Gotham is in a state of emergency. Plus, I'm needed here, I can't just leave…"
Alfred was shocked to see the Commissioner suddenly collapse… Poor man, he must still be exhausted! To pass out in mid-sentence like that… And then the old servant thought he also might be suffering from some sort of mental fatigue - as he watched the Police Commissioner magically float through the air and into the chair in the opposite corner… still asleep.
Rubbing his blinking eyes, Alfred watched as Mrs. Wayne then magically transformed into the crimson woman from this morning, wearing the same white-and-gold outfit from then. It suddenly became clear to Alfred… The crimson Raven had been there the entire time!
"I thought you appeared taller, Mrs. Wayne… And your outfit was an exact copy of the one you wore to the funeral. You never cease to amaze me…"
The crimson Goddess embraced him enthusiastically once again… and this time he truly felt the power that coursed through her body. There was no suppression of her magic for the Commissioner's sake.
"My apologies, Alfred… I'm not familiar with Earth clothes yet. If I appeared like this, I'm afraid I would have caused quite a reaction from our resting Commissioner. Poor man… He does need the rest though."
"Don't we all…"
Raven smiled.
"… An excellent idea, Alfred. That would be for the best. Rest assured, loyal friend… Bruce is fine. And I shall return before both of you awaken."
"Both? I assure you Mrs. Wayne, I am not in the least bit…"
Raven placed the suddenly-slumbering Alfred into the chair opposite James Gordon where he had sat only moments before, next to the man in the bed he had raised for the past twenty years. Who in turn rested beside the man who had kept Gotham safe for even longer than that.
Three stalwart champions of Gotham, all resting peacefully in a row.
She would not let the city they loved tear itself apart.
Instantly teleporting into the Gotham City sky, Raven traded in the white, fluorescent lights of the hospital for the bright, noonday sun. The weather had improved from the day of the funeral. The warm sun had burned off the usual drab Gotham clouds, creating a rare, lovely day this close to winter.
Perhaps that was why so many of the city's worried citizens now filled the streets below her.
The Champion of Magic let her consciousness float downwards… down to the panic and bubbling hysteria that ran rampant along the streets of the mad metropolis below. As the crimson Goddess hovered above this mass of fear and aggression, Raven allowed her sight and senses to flow through all of the lives below.
She knew them all now…Who they were, where they lived, and all the sudden fears and madness that closed in upon them with its tightening grip. The Commissioner had been correct… his officers were fighting a losing battle against anarchy.
Social momentum and curiosity had carried Gotham past the first few days - when Gods had descended upon the Earth - but now its citizens were scared and desperate. People refused to go to work, seeking safety where they could find it. The stores that had remained open were now sold out or overrun with people. The stores that remained closed had been viciously looted.
Roads were jammed with abandoned cars, their tanks empty of fuel while their drivers attempted to flee Gotham on foot, unable to refuel. Gas had been horded by the few - who would no longer be able to drive these impassable roads. Gotham's robust supply chain had been broken, no longer able to provide for a mob of frightened citizens who seized everything that they could lay their hands upon, regardless of need or how it would affect their neighbours.
Gotham had become Pandemonium.
And what the Champion of Magic had in mind was going to take considerable effort… even for her.
The time had come to truly challenge these new abilities.
Raising her arms firmly to the sky, Raven gathered power beyond comprehension to her divine will. Dark storm clouds suddenly burst forth, gushing forth from blue skies while ribbons of lightning wove through the air itself towards her. Even from space, a cyclone could now be seen spiralling above the north-eastern United States, with Raven was its very core.
The first mighty crack of thunder, sounded from clouds as black as night, brought forth the prophesied downpour upon unexpecting Gotham, cold rains dousing the fires of anarchy. Angry mobs suddenly became huddled masses, seeking shelter against the onslaught raining down from the heavens above.
Letting her consciousness sweep along the streets of Gotham, Raven used her Omega Effect to teleport each and every troubled soul back to its home, back to the shelters, back to their parents homes and into their beds… magically asleep. As her divine sight moved from one end of the city to the other, hundreds of thousands of people would later awaken in their own beds… with no clear idea of how they got there.
But order would return.
The Police and Army struggling to maintain sanity in a broken city below could not believe their rain-soaked eyes… as entire mobs of frightened people suddenly disappeared in puffs of black smoke.
Detective Nick Gage examined his tear gas canisters for a malfunction while Detective Romy Chandler scanned the alleyways, wondering how a hundred people could have suddenly vanished before her eyes.
Both soldiers and cops quizzically looked at one another while the rain continued to pour down… neither side able to offer any explanation as to exactly what had just happened. The mob had just… disappeared after the rain had started.
In his Mercedes SLS Black, prominent attorney Andrew Howe did have an entire trunk full of gas… but he was getting nowhere. He also had a private chalet in the Appalachians to ride out the Apocalypse, but he had to get out of this damned city first… And that was no longer possible. The streets of Gotham had become snarled with abandoned cars and the flaming wrecks of cars, and he was stuck in the middle of it.
But he had a revolver and he knew how to use it.
The crazy storm came out of nowhere just then, buckets of rain suddenly dumped down his windshields, obscuring any view he had of the crazies who had been roaming the streets. Great, just what he needed… Thunder from above actually shook his car. Yeah, it was a bad one. Hopefully the rain would drive the mob back underground.
And then something changed… He felt it somehow. The rain had stopped. Gathering his revolver from the passenger seat, Andrew Howe stepped out of his still-wet car and looked around… at his chalet! He had suddenly travelled over two hundred and fifty miles… somehow.
H wasn't in Gotham anymore. And this was his chalet in front of him - the stale city air was now far made it!
He supposed he should have brought his wife along before he evacuated...
Back in the dark skies above Gotham, Raven was actually beginning to shake with the effort. Black matter energy coursed through her like a nuclear reactor as the world below was witness to more magic being being wielded since the time of Creation.
Raven had personally returned over four-hundred-thousand citizens to their homes. At least the ones that didn't have the sense to return themselves in the storm. The most desperate of them, she had returned back to their beds the people had been taken care of, she moved onto the next priority.
She teleported over ninety thousand vehicles off the streets and out of the tunnels, clearing the roadways for emergency vehicles. The fire trucks, ambulances and army vehicles could now get through, although the rain had extinguished most of the fires and Raven had removed the rioting mobs. People had still been injured and required aid.
Calm had been forced upon Gotham by her divine hand.
She was the most powerful force on the planet.
From the atmosphere, the Champion of Magic looked down and suddenly wondered why… Why had she bothered using this much energy? Why had she saved those lives? From the sky, the city was nothing more than patches of grey, green, blue bodies of water and dim lights speckling the miasma of those shapes and colours.
It was a jumble of human madness. Had she intervened upon fate's design and forced a pattern that was not meant to be?
Raven glanced upwards… up to the black mysteries of space and the shining stars beyond. That was where she belonged, not chained to the world below. Gotham was the home of her human mother, not hers. Raven had the power to be anywhere… to be everywhere! She could not belong to this petty world of men when she so clearly belonged with the Gods…
You belong with Bruce.
And then Raven suddenly understood the danger of remaining a Goddess for too long.
She shook her head, casting off the ethereal notions of freeing her consciousness, of letting her spirit drift through the entire Universe to become one with the Cosmos. She had been close to letting it all go, to become something else… just as Bruce may have chosen another of the Fates offered by Trigon and become something else.
Something without her.
But he did not.
Finished with all the work she had wanted to do… the crimson Goddess floated downwards once more... back to the world of man. If she were to remain the Champion of Magic much longer, Raven knew she would abandon her humanity… which meant that she would also lose Bruce.
And she could not allow that to happen. The human-side of her needed to change into a Goddess to become the powerful Champion of Magic, but the Goddess-side of her showed no desire to change back.
Adam had mentioned that being a Champion was difficult.
Lighting upon the rooftop of Gotham General in the pouring rain, Raven planted her feet, took a deep breath and shouted to the heavens above…
"Shazam!"
The magical bolt of lightning that cracked the sky struck her - returning her back to the human she had always been - as the twin dragons of lightning spun around her and her flesh became pale, the power she had held was once again returned to the Gods.
A tired Raven became the human who had been afraid of the incredible power and the legacy that had lain dormant within her for twenty-one years… and perhaps rightfully so.
Human-Raven then realized that she was cold, she was wet, she was on the verge of exhaustion, and she was deeply in love. She teleported back to Bruce's room and stumbled on legs that didn't want to work anymore...
She was unconscious before she hit the white, tiled floor.
The smiling, one-eyed man staring down at her was her prayers realized… as memories slowly came back to her. Why was she laying on a bed? Had she been sleeping? Why was Bruce standing?
"Bruce... You shouldn't be standing up."
"I'm fine, beautiful lady… Even the doctors said so. It's you that I'm worried about, sleeping beauty."
"I am… tired. Why is it so dark in here?"
"It's night time. I turned off the lights because you were sleeping."
"But… How long have I slept?... There is still too much to do!"
Bruce ran his hand and thumb along her soft, flushed cheek, and then kissed her gently on her warm forehead. No one on Earth deserved a rest more than Raven had.
"Yes, there is a lot to do… but I'm not going to let you do it by yourself… not anymore. Raven, I have to return to Washington and reassure the population-at-large that the worst of this crazy mess is over. That we have to rebuild our country… and our world.
You've been asleep for eight solid hours. When the nurse came in, she was surprised to find you lying on the floor. Apparently, there was a mysterious sleeping sickness that spread through Gotham like wildfire this morning and she figured you had it. Once Alfred woke up and told her that you were my wife, they arranged a bed for you beside mine.
Speaking of Alfred, he just went for some tea, but I wasn't going to leave your side until you woke up… I had to hear it from you… I had to hear it all…. About how you kicked Darkseid's ass and then saved the entire Universe."
She chuckled as she held his hand and smiled at her admiring husband.
"I don't deserve all the credit. Darkseid kicked his own butt, I'm afraid… Although I had to take a terrible gamble, my love… It could have ended the very Universe."
"...But it didn't."
"No… I had to place my entire trust in the future. I suppose there is a lesson to be learned there."
"Then start from the beginning, Raven. What happened after I passed out this morning?"
Grasping his hand, Raven told her husband all that had happened since then. Of the day the Universe almost met its end. Of the Phantom Stranger's incredible sacrifice upon Maltus, of how Death herself had come for her father, and how she had used the Source Trigon had stolen to free the remaining Gods of Maltus and heal Bruce. And howshe had returned the Source to the Fates.
She told him of Diana's bravery and Barbara's resourcefulness on the battlefield. She told him of Darkseid's true intentions for her and how she had become the Champion of Magic and cleverly disabled every single one of his Manhunters.
"I would have liked to have seen that…"
"One million Manhunters falling to Earth was an impressive sight, my love."
"Not that… You, as the Champion of Magic. I bet you look super hot."
She embraced him with all the strength she could muster.
"It is a thing I dare not become for long though, Bruce… As Champion, I am powerful beyond measure. It was I who imposed the calm on Gotham this morning, transporting four hundred thousand people back to their homes. I simply willed those who would do the city harm to go to sleep.
But my tenuous ties to humanity slipped with every act of magic I performed as the Goddess-Champion, removed from the very limitations of mortality. Gods were not meant to live upon this Earth and my reason to do so passed with each moment. Were it not for you, I do not believe I would have had the strength to return."
"…Even though our fates are tied?"
"Even though. As a Goddess, I could not love you like I do now."
"Then stay just like you are forever… I could never lose you, Raven."
"Nor I you, my love…"
After their embrace, Raven continued and explained to Bruce how Darkseid was nothing more than Omega Energy with a conscience… How the God had bargained with the Goddess of the Future and exchanged his immortality for the Prophecy of Stone. She told Bruce that after Clark had shattered oppressive Darkseid into a million tiny fragments, the God had simply possessed the entire planet while both her power and the emerald energy of the Green Lanterns had held their world together. Even so, Darkseid would have torn their world asunder…
...Had she not lured him to the surface with the promise of her third wish.
"Third wish? Then what were your first two wishes?"
"My second wish was to have Scott Free resurrected. He is reunited with Barda once more upon New Genesis. My first wish is a birthday surprise for you."
Bruce gave her a wicked grin, realizing that his thirty-third birthday was only days away. He was about to deeply regret what he was going to say just now...
"…Was it for Zatanna Zatara?! You know, ever since your father offered me that second fate, I really… Ow! Ow! Ow!... Careful, you may want children one day!"
"You know I can turn into an all-powerful and vengeful Goddess with only one magic word, right?… A Goddess who can read every single thought, change herself into Zatanna Zatara and then turn you into a good-looking bunny-rabbit for my own personal magic act..."
"But you'll still wear the fishnets, right?"
"You really are incorrigible... Did I hurt you, my love?"
Bruce adjusted the crotch of his pants and its fragile contents - where Raven had just taken a firm grasp – before he continued.
"Only my male ego… So Darkseid wished for the Prophecy of Stone to start from his own heart… which effectively destroyed him. What happened then, love-of-my-life?"
"Death reappeared once more and gathered Darkseid's remains. She took those fragments to the Sea of Oblivion. The Gods of New Genesis said farewell and returned home to New Genesis and I teleported Clark, Barbara and Diana to Themyscira."
"Clark and Barbara went to Themyscira?… To honeymoon with the Amazons?"
"Not exactly... There was another task I had to perform… It was easier if Barbara didn't know."
A sad Raven explained how the Guardians had declared war on the Gods long ago, and how the Oans had drained the immortality of those captive deities of Maltus for their own extended lives. She told Bruce of their terrible penance the last twelve Guardians must pay for that sacrilege. Bruce was less than sympathetic.
"I won't cry for them… Many of our greatest tyrants began with the phrase 'I will protect you'. The cage they offer may indeed protect you, but it also becomes your prison."
"Just as the Ring of the Green Lanterns becomes their own prison? Is that level of responsibility too much to ask of them?"
"They are always free to make that choice… Just as you are, Raven. Sometimes our hands are forced and we must take a stand, but it's best when we know all the consequences and we decide our actions. Barbara will be able to accept that, she always has."
"And will you, my love?"
"I forget you're an empath sometimes, Mrs. Wayne… I'll get this country through the current emergency, but then I'm stepping down. I won't be running in the next Presidential Election… I love you too much for that. But I will request to head up a very special task force."
"Task force? I feel it's something you're passionate about…"
"The Justice League... An organization beyond the limitations of the U.N. that will monitor and respond to intergalactic situations. Something that can protect the Earth from threats beyond the stars, or at least negotiate them with a strong hand for peace.
The Universe is a very big place, and odds are that we'll face a threat beyond our human comprehensions once again. In time, I want to pursue Lois Lane's broad vision… cooperation with worlds beyond our own solar system, but it's not something we're ready for yet. If we can create public ambassadors to the stars, and address the fear, I think we can take our first steps to establish Earth's role in the galaxy."
"It's an excellent vision, my love… With Clark and Barbara on your side, no one will dare to tell you no."
"Yes... And I was hoping a certain First Lady could be on the team as well, and also an Amazon Princess…"
"I'm not going anywhere without you. You'll have to lead this team, Bruce."
"Well… I suppose I'll have to step down from Wayne Industries then… Conflict of interest and all that... But I have just the man in mind to step into my rather large shoes…"
Alfred quietly stepped through the door of the hospital room at that moment, bypassing two Secret Service Agents and carrying two paper cups of tea in front of him…
"Dreadfully sorry, Master Wayne, decent tea is so hard to come by… Oh, Mrs. Wayne! You're awake. Welcome back, my dear! May I offer you some tea?..."
"I'm fine, Alfred… Actually, I am a little hungry…"
Raven's stomach made an audible growl. It had been a day-and-a-half since she had eaten...
Bruce grinned and took his embarrassed wife by her hand, as he looked meaningfully into her lovely, violet eyes.
"Are you alright now, Raven? Are you OK to get out of here?"
"Much better now, Bruce. Yes, I would love go for nice dinner, I just pushed myself a little too hard before…"
"Great, then we can eat on the Helicopter… Marine One is waiting for us on the roof. I've arranged for a change of clothes and Chinese food. Hope you don't mind."
Well… she was the Acting President's wife after all.
Author's Note:
When Raven first appeared in Bruce's room in front of Commissioner Gordon, she used the power of Zareah to make herself look like her human self. She hadn't changed back at that point. That's how Alfred noticed that she was taller when he embraced her.
The longer that Raven stays as the Goddess-Champion, the further she drifts from her humanity. In time, the crimson Goddess would see no valid reason to turn back into her 'powerless' human form…
If a mole had the ability to change into a full-fledged human, would it then willingly turn back into a mole?