Chapter 18

Standing on the same rooftop where Batman confronted him the first time they met, now abandoned , Clark was left with his thoughts. He had only been there briefly and that experience hadn't allowed him to view Gotham beyond where he had stood. The city lived up to its notoriety and Clark wasn't sure he wanted to absorb the acrid atmosphere. Even though it was in the early evening, it was unusually dark. A thin layer of haze barely allowed the dying light to filter through onto the streets of the dirty city. What light was available seemed cold and unwelcoming. It seemed a place of perpetual twilight as a darkness clung to the city like wet clothing clings to skin. The blackness of the city mirrored his thoughts.

What kind of man would use someone like that?

Clark knew that he was naïve. Even when he was faced with the worst of humanity he believed in the best (regardless of the past months), so he was still surprised and angered that someone would use blackmail to gain an ally. He knew that Batman was hard and terrifying, but it was the man underneath the cowl that perplexed Clark. What beliefs did this man hold that he thought the best way to interact with people was through subterfuge? If this Batman wanted to contact him, he was open to a conversation. They had spoken before, although Batman had done most of the talking.

As he stood there silently wondering about the mysterious caped crusader, if he was honest with himself he knew a part of him dreaded their meeting. Batman was a kind of someone he had never encountered before beyond the usual smack talk, but he had to see him. He had to actually try to have a conversation with him. However, he knew Batman's abilities: how he moved like a deadly shadow haunting the dregs of society. As a master of stealth and shadow, he had a feeling that even with his enhanced senses, he would have difficulty finding him.

Suddenly his super hearing detected a high-pitched whir. Without looking he caught the incoming object easily and examined it. It was some sort of throwing star in the shape of a bat.

Way to keep to theme.

To Clark's astonishment, the small device began beeping and flashing. Clark barely had a second to react before it exploded in his hand. Although unharmed, he was disoriented and when the smoke cleared a lone dark figure stood on the opposite side of the roof.

Batman had found him.

Panting, he quickly regained his composure and faced him. Clark had a strong stature and was practically forged of steel, but that didn't stop him from noticing that the man before him stood looming, a long shadow drawing from him, making him seem larger than he was; although his normal stature was still imposing to an opponent. Standing at least at 6'4'', he was also broad shouldered and strong. His cape dragged dramatically and draped around him, his mask the face of fear and menace. He barely looked human. As though he were simply an extension of its shadow, he seemed confident and comfortable in the dark. Personified vengeance, an angel of doom, a dark knight. Clark knew had a power of mind as well of body. He would have to determine his secret. Despite his invulnerability, his heart beat a little faster. If there was a way to defeat the Man of Steel, this man would surely find it and more than likely already had.

Testing this theory was not the point of this meeting. Remaining impassive, he cleared his throat. "Hello," he said cordially, "I wanted-"

"Are you stupid?" Batman barked.

"What?"

"Are you deaf too? I thought I warned you about coming back," he growled. "You're either a moron, deaf, or you have some sort of penchant for punishment."

Clark raised his eyebrows. He refused to allow this conversation to be a repeat of the last time. Pulling back his shoulders and standing to his full height, Clark resolved that he would not be intimidated by this man.

"So which is it?" Batman snapped. He seemed unmoved by his change in demeanor.

"You must not talk to people much," he bit out.

"I find talking gets in the way of action."

"I never would have guessed," Clark said sardonically.

Batman said nothing, but Clark could have sworn that he saw him twitch if only slightly.

"You don't have a witty response to that?"

Batman remained still as a gargoyle. Exasperated, Clark continued. "Fine. I'll make my point. I don't want to be here any more than you do, but considering the circumstances, I figured we should meet and discuss what's been going on."

Batman smirked. "So you worked it out. Took you long enough."

Clark held back a scoff. "You didn't think I would?"

"No."

Clark's annoyance deepened. Putting aside everything his parents had taught him about politeness, he drove home the point.

"You were spying on me. Why?" he asked with a hard edge to his voice. However Batman seemed unfazed.

"No one man should have all that power. The seductive nature of power can bring even a righteous man to sin against others."

"And you thought stalking me was the answer?"

He nodded once. "I don't trust easily. Talk is just noise. Besides all things considered there's no reason I should trust you."

Clark tried in vain to ignore the obvious dig, but it slipped right in. No matter what he did, no matter how long he lived, he would always carry the burden of his sin. But now was not the time for self-reflection, nor was it the time to show weakness. Therefore, Clark kept up his hard veneer.

"And you threw an explosive at me because..."

He shrugged a little. "I wanted your attention."

"Right. 'Talk is just noise.'"

Batman smirked and Clark sighed exasperated.

"What do you want from me?"

"The truth," he said simply.

"You don't know enough?"

"I don't often go out of my way to meet fellow crimefighters, but when it comes to one such as yourself, with your past," he paused significantly, "I make it a point to ferret out the complete truth."

He could admit to himself he was nervous, but at the same time he felt indignant at being judged by such a dark man. He knew Batman's reputation of excessive force and brutality. In his heart Clark knew that those flaws didn't add up to murder, but that didn't completely explain Batman's actions. Was he only there to pass judgment?

"What more is there?"

"I need to know," he said simply.

Batman shifted slightly and a small spherical device rolled toward him. The memory of the explosive fresh in his mind he stepped back and then from the ground burst forth a flash of blinding light. Clark cried out and shielded his eyes. Then something started pulsing with incredibly loud noise. It was over almost as soon as it had started. When he opened his eyes his vision was blurred and Batman was gone. There was something behind him. He turned and was struck in the face. That the blow had rattled him wasn't the only surprise, Batman was in some sort of mechanical armor. Easily Clark lifted him and threw him away from him.

Batman combat rolled to a standing position and sent a barrage of batarangs at him, which he deflected with controlled bursts of his heat vision. Then he felt the tear of fabric and flesh on his arm and cried out in pain. In anger he released his heat vision at Batman, but it wasn't a direct hit and caused minimal damage to the armor. It was however, enough to distract him giving Clark a chance to find the offensive batarang to inspect it.

It looked unremarkable until he tried examining it with his spectral vision. The colors of light refracted off the metal not allowing him to scan through it.

"Kryptonian metal." He heard Batman say. "And that's not your only weakness."

What? "Why are you doing this?"

"This is my job. I dispense justice."

Batman jumped up and attempted to strike him from above, but Clark caught him easily and threw him down. Clark glared at him in both anger and pain. While Batman was incapacitated, he took a moment to better look at the man. His eyes dilated in trying to see through his cowl, but failed. The masked man smirked again.

"Lead plating," he said smugly tapping his head.

Then Clark had a thought. Batman had worked for over a decade now. It stood to reason that he had several injuries. Quickly he scanned him from head to foot until he found something interesting. His body was ravaged with lost cartilage, scar tissue, and healing bruises, but nothing that could identify him until he got to his right leg. His right knee at some point had been replaced and he could just make out a partial serial number. Clark allowed himself a satisfied small smirk, but only for a moment until his eyes softened. Although he was angered by the circumstances, he was also stunned by how much punishment Batman's body had received over the years. Batman's commitment was not in doubt, but this level of constant injury and recovery...His nightly crime fighting seemed more like a penance than an act of vengeance. Clark readjusted his eyes to look him straight in the face.

"You didn't think I would make it that easy, did you?" he said still smirking.

He forced his face to stay maddened.

"Of course not. People like you never make things easy."

"I guess you're not entirely hopeless." He chuckled mirthlessly as he sent an uppercut at Clark. It connected painfully and sent Clark stumbling back a little. Taking advantage of the opening, Batman sent a storm of jabs at him faster and stronger than the average human. Each one he either dodged or blocked. Up, right, to the face, to the chest, right kick, front kick. Then Clark pushed him back open palmed. Batman stumbled momentarily before throwing a flying kick at him, which Clark caught and sent him careening into a wall. In a blur, Clark sped to him, and pinned him to the wall with one hand, holding his other fist at the ready. Then Batman activated a jet pack device sending them both into the air, where Batman shot him with a mini rocket. Although it sent him hurtling back, he froze the missile with his breath and flew after Batman. Punches were exchanged and blocked respectively. Until finally, Clark spun Batman around and pulled off one of the propulsion devices, but before Clark could react, Batman had pushed off of him and was gliding down back to the roof top.

Clark moved to follow him, but was distracted by a sound nearby. Coming from his back, Clark heard a distinct beeping noise and saw something flashing red. Barely a second passed before the explosive set off, throwing him off-balance for a moment, until he regained his composure to fly to the rooftop directly toward Batman. Batarangs were thrown to deter him, but he caught them all and crushed them easily as he landed. He zoomed to Batman, pinning him again, but instead of his fists he used his heat vision to fry the mechanical armor. The mechanism sparked and smoked as the lights died. Holding the de-powered man, he very slowly retracted his heat vision, but continued to glare.

The man gasped from the smoke. "Go ahead. It's not like it would be your first time."

Clark shoved him away with just enough force to cause Batman to stumble back into the wall of the enclosed stairs and knock the wind out of him.

"If you think I would kill you, you don't know me very well," he said quietly as he turned away. His hands were shaking.

"I know well enough. Or have you forgotten that day when you killed a man?"

"Who was going to kill everyone else," he said defensively.
"You think that's an excuse?" Batman demanded.

"No!" Clark thundered loud enough to stun Batman into silence.

"I have never forgotten. Ever since what I did... it's always there. Every time I close my eyes I feel my hands around his neck. His voice, his final moments haunt my dreams. Every person I can't save shares his face. Zod was an evil man, but I didn't want to kill him. Believe me, I wish I had had another way to stop him. That's why everyday I vow to never take another life. That's why everyday I ask for forgiveness. You may know my name, where I live, my abilities, and my weaknesses, but you don't know anything about that day and every day after."

For once Batman's silence was not condescending. But Clark didn't have the patience to allow him a chance to speak.

"I will never forgive myself for what I've done. But I will move on from it. I will live and you do not have the right to threaten that life."

"Superman-"

"Stay away from my family," he nearly shouted. "Stay away from Melissa. Stay away from me."

Batman's face was unreadable, but Clark didn't care. He was done with Batman and with Gotham for the night.