Chapter 34: Justice Dads go to War Part 1
It was a normal day in Happy Harbor and all seemed as it should be. Even the Jr. Justice League was as they had their training at Mount Justice as usual. They were currently working on team building exercises and all the mentors had accompanied them for this. They also had a few surprise show ups with Black Canary, Wonder Woman, Hawkgirl, Green Lantern, and Red Tornado.At the moment they were locked in a round of tug of war. On one side was Superboy, Robin, and Speedy on the other was Aqualad, Kid Flash, and Miss Martian. At the moment the teams were pretty evenly matched as sure one side had Superboy, but also had Robin who despite his skill was also only 6. The other side had Miss Martian and Kaldur who were able to counter Superboy's strength descently, though similarly they had Kid Flash whose strength was speed not physical strength. It was adorable to hear their little grunts as they tried to pull the flag in the middle to their side.
"Come on Superboy, you got this! Show them that Kryptonian strength is king!" Superman yelled out excitedly.
"Aqualad, keep your balance and work with your team! You three together can do this!" Aquaman yelled out in protest.
"You got this Speedy, cream them like pie!" Green Arrow yelled out way too excitedly and ten times louder.
Speedy cringed hard core at this, as this was how Green Arrow was at his games too. He was always the loudest and most obnoxious in the crowd. It was touching in a way, but also super embarrassing, especially when he would then later fight the ref and get kicked outâ..again.
"Do they always get this worked up when they watch the kids train?" Hawkgirl asked with a chuckle.
"Yes, it's like a game to them to see who can cheer the loudest for their protégé. Which if I had to choose the winner it would definitely be Oliver." Wonder Woman chuckled back.
"If you think this is bad, you should see him at Roy's games. I have had to start recording them now because he gets kicked out nearly every time for fighting with the ref." Black Canary said cringing just as hard as Speedy.
The tug of war went on for five more minutes and it was a close call but eventually Superboy, Kid Flash, and Robin won.
"Yay we won!" Robin squealed as he jumped up and down.
Everyone looked at the excited little boy with eyes of adoration for the unbelievably cute son of Batman.
"That was good work team, you all worked excellently together. Next exercise you will all be working together as one unit. It's important for you all to be able to trust one another and work as a cohesive unit. If there is any imbalance within your team, you will never be able to accomplish your missions and it will make your future hero work much harder. We in the league have mastered our ability to work with a diverse group of members. At any moment we could be paired with anyone in the League so we need to be able to communicate and work well with others that we may have never met before. But we can focus on that later. Agent A has prepared lunch for you all, so be sure to thank him when you get to the kitchen." Batman explained and instructed in his usual mostly stoic manner.
All the kids squealed excitedly as they made their way to the kitchen. Once there they saw several large and neatly packed picnic baskets as well as Alfred standing there with a knowing smile.
"Hello children, I see you all have been working very hard today. So I thought a nice little picnic on the beach outside would be fun for everyone."
"Yay, you're the best Alfred!" Dick squealed as he hugged Alfred's legs.
"I try my best Master Dick, now all of you go on and get changed. I'm sure you would all like to go for a little swim after lunch as well on such a beautiful day like this." Alfred suggested, as he always made sure to find opportunities for the children to just be normal children when he could.
All the kids ran to their mentors and dragged them to go get changed and ready for the beach.
"You do realize today is a training day Alfred?" Bruce asked with his cowl off.
"The children have trained all morning Master Bruce, I think a little beach picnic would do them some good." Alfred responded as he emphasized the word children.
"Alfred I understand what you're trying to do, but you and I know very well we won't get anything else done because of this."
"Master Bruce, the children have been training since 6:30 this morning, that is over five hours of training. They already go to school every day, do hero work in the night, and get little sleep and relaxation. Do you want to be responsible for them collapsing during the next exercise?" Alfred said calmly but very firmly.
Immediately Bruce felt a twinge of guilt stab his heart, had he really been so heartless and careless. Then his thoughts went to the hours of training he subjected the team to and their tired little yawns, how they were barely able to keep their eyes open, and requests for a break he denied.
"Damn it, I have been working them too hard, what was I thinking! They must hate me now." Bruce said bent over the counter as he hit it hard with his fist.
Alfred then tenderly placed a gloved hand on Bruce's back.
"Master Bruce, they do not hate you, they love you dearly. But unfortunately children are very anxious to please and they will do anything to get your love and approval, especially Master Dick. He wants so much to be like you and make you proud of him!"
"But I am proud of him, I couldn't ask for a better partner or a son!" Bruce panicked, now worried he was not showing enough love and pride to his child.
"He knows that and you are a splendid father and mentor to him, but it is important to take the little moments like this. They won't last forever and Master Dick wants to experience them with you so desperately. Now go, I'm sure he is waiting for you!" Alfred comforted and instructed.
"I will, thank you Alfred, what would I do without you?" Bruce said as he went to his son's room.
"You would work yourself to death." Alfred sighed quietly but with a smile as he then went to work at getting the baskets to the beach.
On the Beach
Outside Alfred had set up several beach blankets each with a basket on top. Inside the baskets were delicious gourmet sandwiches, potato salad, sliced fruit, a container of freshly made cookies, and juice boxes for the children. Alfred looked at his work with pride, he truly did impress himself every once in a while.
Then just as he planned the mentors and the protégés came out of Mount Justice. They were all in swimsuits, t-shirts, and coverups and each child was basically bathed in Sun Screen from head to toe. But hey when you have as many redheads and fair skinned children as the League did, you had to.
The children all gathered on one blanket while the adults dispersed to the ones laying around. Immediately they all dug in and as usual were moaning with pleasure as the delicious food entered their mouths. The magic of Alfred's food truly could not be overstated.
Soon enough they were finished and proceeded to play on the beach. Most of the adults just sat talking, keeping careful watch of the children in the water. Though they weren't too worried as Arthur was playing with them in the ocean, so if anything went wrong he could easily rescue them.
"They truly are the cutest little kids around, I mean just look at them! Those smiles and laughs could stop the meanest super villain in their tracks." Oliver cooed as he watched the kids just play and have fun like they did with him and Dinah at the comfort party.
Dinah leaned into him almost knowing he was reminiscing on that wonderful night, just like she was.
"I know, I'm jealous! I wish I had a protégé like you guys. They're all just so cute and little." Shiera gushed, her wings somehow matching the feeling as they contorted and fluffed up.
"They sure are cute, but don't be fooled. They can be a handful sometimes, or do I need to remind you of kitchen raids 2 and 3." Barry playfully reminded the Thanagarian.
Everyone laughed at the memory of the messes.
"Don't forget either, underneath those smiles and laughs is a lot of trauma they are still trying to work out. It's not all playtime and cuddles." Bruce said as he brought in the reality check as usual.
"We're fully aware of that Bruce, don't you forget both of our boys are seeing the same Psychiatrist almost two times a week still. So it's nice to see them just be happy little kids sometimes." Clark responded with almost a sense of desperation in his voice.
Desperation for his little boy to be ok and to not be haunted by CADMUS anymore.
"I know, and you're right it is nice to see them like this." Bruce corrected himself, realizing he was bringing down the happy mood, as Diana placed a comforting arm on both the Dark Knight and The Blue Boy Scout.
They all just watched the kids play for a little while longer, until Bruce insisted they at least add a little bit of training. They argued for a bit on that one, but ultimately compromised to a little game of beach volleyball for the kids. So one more they split up the teams this time having Wally, Roy, and Kaldur on one time and Conner, Dick, and M'gann on the other.
"Alright, you all know the rules! If the ball hits the ground of the opposing team's side or is hit out of bounds in the back that's a point. If it goes out of bounds anywhere else that a team for the opposing side. Now I want this to be a real team effort so no ball hogging, arguing, or name calling. Agreed?" Bruce explained as he threw the ball up lightly with one hand.
"Yes sir!" All the kids responded in unison.
"Good, right side has the ball first. You may start on my signal." Bruce said as he tossed the ball to Roy's team.
Roy easily caught it and brought his team in, Conner's followed suit, and discussed their plan. This went on for about two minutes before everyone then got into position. Roy was going to serve first so he got the ball ready to be thrown over. There was a moment of silence as they all waited in anticipation for the signal. Soon enough after what felt like an eternity of silence the signal was given.
"And play!" Bruce shouted out.
Roy immediately threw the ball up and served it with a high jump and a hard smack. The ball went flying over the kids sized net only to be volleyed by M'gann. As the ball fell back down to earth, Dick then hit the ball over to Conner. The little Kryptonian jumped up and spiked it hard to the other side only for Kaldur to dive and hit it back up. Wally then hit the ball back over the net sending it flying towards Dick who then hit the ball back over. This time the ball hit Roy's court earning one point for Conner's team. All the corresponding mentors cheered for their protégés' achievement, as the opposing team mentors gave encouragement for the protégés to not be discouraged. Except Oliver who was already in hysterics as he shouted for Roy to grind Conner's team into the ground.
Dinah, with an embarrassed smile on her face, did her best to calm her boyfriend down. Even still the game went on with each team making great moves, scoring points, and showing great examples of teamwork. Bruce couldn't be prouder, as he watched all his training coming to use as the kids played. He knew he could stand to work them a little less but gosh could he train kids well. Soon enough it was match point for Roy's team who led by two points.
"Alright this is match point, if Roy's team scores they win. If Conner's team scores then we play on to 23 points. With that in mind, play!"
Roy poised his body to hit the ball with full force, ready to take down his opponents, but then suddenly the wind picked up. Sand was flying everywhere blinding everyone and was soon followed by a loud almost deep horn sound. Once the dust settled enough everyone looked for the source of the noise and wind. However, they were not prepared for what they were about to see. There high in the sky was a ginormous and very menacing looking spaceship.
The kids had no idea what was going on, but the adults knew all too well what they were looking at. The ship could be none other than Darkseid's, the conqueror of other worlds and self proclaimed god of destruction. This was not good as they had fought the world conquerors many times and each time it only got worse.
"Kids get inside, it's notâ." Bruce started to say before multiple bright flashes appeared around them.
Before the dark knight could finish his sentence at least 20 parademons surrounded them and accompanying them was none other than Granny Goodness and Lashina.
"Parademons take care of the Justice League! We shall handle the children."
The creatures obeyed immediately and went on to attack the adults leaving the team to the two members of the Female Furies.
"Kids run, these women are too powerful! Get to safety!" Diana called out desperately as she was fighting a group of five Parademons.
The kids turned to run like the Amazonian princess said only to be blocked by an electrified whip.
"Now now children, it isn't polite to avoid people. I am Granny Goodness, general of the great Darkseid's elite. I have come to bring you to his majesty and induct you into our army. You should feel honored as this is an opportunity so few are given." Granny Goodness said with a sadistic smile.
"Really, you know I was taught it was not safe to talk to strangers, especially those who want to take me somewhere without my parents. Also this must be some army if they let an old lady lead it." Roy retorted back to seek tough for the other kids, though inside he was shaking.
"My what a mouthy little boy, though that won't be a problem after I'm done with you. Lashina surround them!" Granny Goodness said as she twirled her staff around herself.
Lashina then pulled out another whip and created a perimeter around the team to prevent their escape.
"Aqualad take care of the whips! Everyone else help me put Granny here to bed!" Roy commanded as he pulled out his retractable bow from his pocket and a slew of retractable arrows from his other pocket.
Everyone immediately pushed down their fear and got into position to fight. Without hesitation Granny Goodness attacked the children swinging her staff first at Dick, perceiving him as the weakest. Luckily Dick knew exactly what she was doing and flipped up into the air successfully dodging the staff. As Granny missed, the end of the staff was then grabbed by Conner. The little Kryptonian then swung the old woman around like a hammer and then threw her into the ocean. In that time Kaldur's had absorbed the electricity from Lashina's whip and was engaged in hand to hand combat with her.
Not even a second had passed when Granny Goodness rose from the ocean a smirk on her face.
"My sources had told me you kids were strong, but this is beyond my expectations. I can't wait to get you in the training arena, you'll mop the floor with my other students!" Granny said gleefully as she jumped from her place in the ocean, flew over 100 feet of water, and landed back on shore.
Lashina quickly joined up with her and the two resumed their fight with the team. Kaldur who had managed pretty well against her, save a few lash marks, joined his team as well. However despite having meta humans on their side the team struggled against the two women with their superhuman strength and expert combat skills. By the end of the fight all the children were on the ground from a mixture of exhaustion and some hard blows from the Female Furies. Lashina and Granny Goodness looked down with pride at their work, having no shame in beating children.
"An excellent first exercise little ones, but there is much improvement to be had. Lashina, tie them up, we don't need to have them running off on us once we have returned to our homeworld." Granny said smugly.
"Touch them again and you'll be wishing you had run off."
Everyone turned to see all of the Justice League members present standing in a group, a little banged up but none the less strong.
"Well I can see where these children get their strength from, it's clear they have been well taught." Granny said just as smugly.
"Step away from the kids Goodness, you're outnumbered and out matched!" Clark commanded sternly.
"Huh, I do suppose you're right, even with you all drained from fighting the parademons I supposeâ." Goodness said faking defeat until she pounced at the League.
Lashina did the same thing as she jumped at the group to join her leader. Unfortunately the two really were out matched as they soon found themselves with their ears ringing as they were blasted back into the ocean behind them by the force of pure sound.
"Nice work Dih!" Oliver said proudly to his girlfriend.
"I thought it was clear they didn't hear us very well, so I thought a nice little reminder was in order." Dinah said equally as proud.
Soon enough the two Female Furies rose back up to the surface coughing up water.
"You may have protected your little ones from us this time, but do not get too comfortable. His majesty lord Darkseid himself has demanded these children be brought to him. So enjoy what little time you have left with them, they and this world will soon be ours." Goodness declared before she pulled out her fatherbox and teleported herself and Lashina back to Darkseid's ship.
Despite the anger they felt inside for not having captured Granny Goodness the adults had no time to address this. They instead ran to their children desperate to know if they were ok. Luckily for them no major injuries were found, but this did not stop them from fretting over them and double if not triple checking for injuries.
"Dickie, baby, are you alright?! Are you hurt?!" Bruce asked desperately as he scanned his baby boy.
"I'm fine daddy, my arm just hurts a little bit." The boy wonder tried to assure his father, though the pain was evident on his face.
"Dickie, what have we talked about, about lying about how we feel?" Bruce asked as he lifted the little boy's chin.
"It's badâbut I just don't want you to worry daddy. I wanna prove you can trust me to be Robin and to fight on my own." Dick sniffled a bit as his eyes watered a bit from the pain and his desire to please his father.
"Oh my brave little boy, you know I trust you more than anyone." Bruce said as he gathered Dick into his arms.
Dick immediately nuzzled in, happy to know his daddy understood him better than anyone.
"Kaldur, my child, are you well? Did they hurt you?" Arthur asked as he kneeled and placed his hands on the little Atlantean's shoulders.
"I am well my king, save a few lash marks." Kaldur said with a smile as he tried to hide the lasting and stinging pain the marks left.
Arthur was not fooled and hugged the boy to his chest, quiet tears running down his face. Kaldur immediately broke down and quietly sobbed as he hugged the king desperately in hopes he could make the pain go away.
"Roy! Are you alright? Is anything broken?" Dinah asked the ten year old frantically as she looked for injuries.
"Dinah I'm fine, stop fussing so much!" Roy whined.
"Roy, you did a great job out there! I couldn't believe it! You really held up your own!" Oliver praised as he also looked over Roy's body for injuries.
"Ohâthanks! Oliver Iâ" Roy blushed, not expecting to be praised.
"Oh stop being shy and get over here!" Oliver said with a wide smile as he pulled his son to him.
Immediately the three were untwined in a group hug, happy they were all safe.
"M'gann, sweet child, are you harmed?" J'onn asked with great concern as he helped the little Martian girl up.
"I'm ok, but uncle those ladies thoughts they wereâ." M'gann began to try to articulate tearfully until her uncle held her.
"Shhhh I know child, I know." J'onn interrupted all too aware of what his little niece saw in the Furies' minds and knew they were not things a little girl should have to speak of.
"Wally, it's alright they're gone! You're safe now!" Barry cooed as he held his practically vibrating nephew.
Wally was so terribly afraid he'd never felt more powerless than in their fight with the Female Furies. Normally he could dodge and kick far faster than the bad guys. But this time he was stopped at every turn and he swore at one point Granny Goodness looked at him directly while he was using his super speed. No one was supposed to be able to see him let alone look at him.
As he shook Barry simply held him and tried to comfort him as best as he could.
Clark on the other hand said nothing as he just held his child for dear life. Conner shook with pure fear, once again someone tried to take him away from his daddy. When would people finally leave him alone and just let him be happy? Almost the same thoughts were in Clark's head only instead of fear they were powered by pure rage. He had had enough of people trying to take his child and Darkseid was about to become his personal punching bag for being another one of those people.
"Everyone get the kids inside! We'll talk more about this later!" Bruce announced as he carried his little boy inside the cage quickly.
Everyone else followed suit, everyone filled with a mixture of fear and raging anger.
One hour later
All the children were put down for a nap, exhausted from the training and their fight with Granny Goodness and Lashina. Meanwhile the adults had stood and watched the news on the holo-screen for the last hour. They watched as Darkseid's ships appeared everywhere and hoards of Parademons were attacking cities around the world.
"No one knows why Darkseid has returned to earth, but what we do know is we need the Justice League. We plead with you to please once more defeat this threat and save our planet." The news anchor closed her reporting with desperation.
"This isn't like it was last time, how has he covered so much ground so fast?" Hawkgirl commented with great concern.
"I don't know, but whatever it is. It can't be good." Flash commented back.
"How it's happening doesn't matter, what matters is how we stop it." Batman said seriously as he turned off the holo-screen.
"Ok, so what is the plan to stop this then? Because I'm ready to take on Darkseid himself if I have to." Green Arrow asked, ready to kick ass with the people who tried to take his son.
"Well lucky for you that's the exact spirit we need to execute my plan." Batman answered stoically as he turned the holo-map on.
The map is populated with all the ships Darkseid had on the planet.
"Based on our past experience with Darkseid we know that he is a mastermind at battle strategy, especially on a larger scale. So we must attack before he can execute any strategy he may already have."
"But how do we do that? We barely beat him last time and he only had half the forces he has now!" Superman asked with extreme worry as this time he had so much more to lose if Darkseid won.
"Luckily for us we have also grown our forces. Last time we only had the original seven, but since then the League has recruited well beyond that. Based on our records we have enough members to send in teams of twenty or more to each ship. So with that in mind, the plan will go as follows. We will divide into teams of twenty and each team will take on one ship. We will do so simultaneously so as to not allow the others to be alerted and able to give back up to their nearby allies."
"But what about if a team runs into a ship with Darkseid himself? Surely it will take more than just twenty members to defeat him?" Wonder Woman asked with great concern.
"I have already identified the ship Darkseid is on due to the energy output of one of the ships being picked up by one of the satellites before its destruction. We the original seven and a few select others will be in charge of this particular ship."
"Wait, are you saying we are going to be facing Darkseid with fewer members than all the other teams!? Are you crazy?! We should be the largest team if we are going to take on that monster!" Superman yelled infuriated.
"Do I need to remind you that they just tried to take our children and there is ample reason to believe they will try again! This means we need several members to stay behind to watch and protect them. Or do you want this to be the last time we see them again, making everything we are about to do reckless and pointless!" Batman said in a calm but very harsh tone.
Superman immediately shut up as he looked down in shame for having yelled at the person who was thinking of everything to try and protect everyone in the league and world at large.
"Now with that understood, I have already selected a few of you to stay behind with the kids. I have also called in extra help from the other league members as well as outside help."
"Wait outside help, whoâ.?" Black Canary started to ask before Batman blew through her question and continued talking.
"Black Canary and Red Tornado you two will stay here with the kids. You will be joined by Etrogan and Aquaman's wife Mira who should both be here shortly. Zatara will also bring his daughter Zatanna here to be watched. Apparently Darkseid's furies attempted to kidnap her as well. Is that all understood?" Batman asked to clarify the plan and assignments were comprehended.
All nodded the message was received, but Martian Manhunter then spoke.
"I'm afraid we are not the only ones who have heard the plan. Children come out, I am fully aware you have been listening to our meeting." Martian Manhunter sighed without looking at any one direction.
One que all the kids, all dressed in pajamas, came out from behind a nearby wall most of them with tears running down their face. Some of them immediately ran to their mentors sobbing into their legs, while others just stood frozen in their spots looking down at the floor. To say that the mentor's hearts broke, was an understatement. If anything they were pulverized to dust, and all by the tears of a few small children.
"Conner please, don't cry, I'm going to be back. I promise!" Clark tried to say bravely as he scooped up his little boy and squeezed him tightly to his chest, all as he tried to hold back his own tears.
"No! Please don't go daddy! I can't lose you!" Conner sobbed out as he held onto his fathers neck for dear life.
"I know baby, but I have to go, because I can't lose you either. My number one job is to keep you safe and as long as these people are here you won't be." Clark said as he held his son so so close.
Conner just sobbed, unable to hold back his tears as he tried to grapple with the fact he might lose the father he waited so long for and suffered so much to meet.
Wally and M'gann were in similar states as they were held tightly by their uncles to give them just a few more moments of comfort before they had to part.
"Queen Mira shall be here shortly my child to protect you all. You must be sure to stick close to her and not try to come and help us. Do you understand Kal?" Arthur asked with great seriousness as he held the atlantean child to his chest.
"Yes my king I will be sure to obey the queen." Kaldur responded as he nuzzled into his mentor's chest to feel his warmth for what could be the last time.
Arthur could help a silent tear rolling down his face, his heart breaking from the idea of not seeing his son again.
"I love you Kaldur'ahm, we may share no blood, but that will not change that you will always be my son." Arthur whispered into Kaldur's little ear as he kissed his head as well.
Kaldur couldn't speak, instead he kissed his surrogate father's cheek and then nuzzled his face into his neck.
"Please keep them safe Di, and don't do anything stupid yourself." Oliver said desperately as he held the woman he loved in his arms.
"I promise Oli, and you better promise to come back in one piece." Dinah chuckled, choking back tears, as she wrapped her arms around Oliver.
They held each other for about a minute until Oliver turned to Roy.
"You have to be a leader now Roy, this team needs you more than ever." Oliver expressed as he kneeled down to Roy's level and placed his hands on his shoulders, suddenly reminding him just how young the little boy still was.
"I will, I promise. I'll make you proud." Roy said with determination his knuckles gripped tightly.
"Oh Roy, you do make me proud, you make me prouder than anything else in the world." Oliver started to say as tears leaked from his eyes.
Roy then started to leak tears himself as he threw himself into Oliver's arms.
"Better come back you big jerk!" Roy cried quietly as he wrapped his arms around Oliver's neck.
"I will!" Oliver cried as he immediately wrapped the boy into a tight hug, tears now pouring from his eyes.
Dinah immediately knelt down and joined in, the little family now trying to hold onto what they had for as long as possible.
"Daddy please don't leave me, you can't go!" Dick sobbed quietly into his fathers dark cape.
"I have to Dickie! Someone has to lead the league to victory." Bruce said, his cowl down, as he wrapped his poor baby boy in his cape to try and comfort him.
"Then take me with you, Batman can't go out there without Robin!" Dick begged desperately, afraid to lose the only father he had left.
"No baby bird, this is one place Robin can't follow Batman. I need you to stay here where it's safe! You're the most precious part of my life and I couldn't live with myself if something ever happened to you." Bruce explained as he slowly rocked his sobbing baby.
"But but daddyâ." Dick sobbed weakly.
"No buts baby, you're going to stay here with all the other kids. But the good news is I called in someone I know you'll want to be here with while you wait for us to come back." Bruce said, barely keeping it together.
It was then as if on cue the sound of heels walking quickly came towards them. Dick turned his head and his eyes opened very wide. There standing in the hallway looking frantically for something was Selina Kyle. Almost sensing her baby looking at her, Selina immediately ran to where Bruce and Dick were.
"Kitty!" Dick cried as he held out his arms to Selina.
Without even a word Selina gathered the crying little boy into her arms and held him tightly to her chest. The poor boy cuddled into her immediately trying his best to hold in his emotions. He was of course very happy to see Selina there, but that of course did not suddenly dissolve his deep anxiety and sadness over the danger his father was about to face without him by his side.
"Bruce, what is she doing here?!" Superman cried out as soon as he noticed Selina, immediately recognizing who she was.
"I've called her here to help watch the team." Batman said in a stoic tone as he pulled his cowl on and wrapped his arm around Selina.
"You called in a villain to watch our children!" Superman bellowed only to immediately regret it as Conner started to act distressed.
"Selina has left behind her villain status and is more than capable of caring for and protecting the team." Batman said still in a stoic tone but with a hint of pride as well.
"Oh she's just left behind now has she, by that do you mean she's beenâ" Green Lantern started to chime only to get a fierce daddybats look as a warning to, one using inappropriate language in front of the kids and two bringing up the subject of his sexual relations in front of them as well.
So Green Lantern immediately shut up, realizing he would probably be killed by the dark knight had he gone any further.
"As I have said Selina has reformed herself and left behind her life of crime."
"I promise I've changed, I know what I did was wrong. I was only trying to survive at the time, which is no excuse! Then things just escalated and there just didn't seem to be a way out. But I promise I will help protect the kids with my life, I may not have superpowers but I can fight just as well as Batman. Sometimes better than him depending on the day." Selina said with her usual wit as she nudged the bats ribs.
This elicited a few giggles from some of the kids, even Dick who smiled ever so slightly. This immediately softened some of the hearts of the mentors, who had desperately wanted to see their children smile again. Dinah immediately went up and took one of Selina's hands in hers.
"I will happily fight alongside you Selina, no one is as good of a judge of character as Bruce or Dick. The fact that they both trust you tells me all I need to know." Dinah said very sincerely.
"What can I say? I'm a lucky woman they gave me a chance. But since we're going to be working together, call me Catwoman for the time being. We can be more informal after we're all safe." Catwoman said as she grasped Black Canary's hand back.
"You're right, and in the same spirit you can call me Black Canary." Black Canary agreed in solidarity, determined to show respect to her new friend.
"Now that we have put that issue to bed, it's time to say our goodbyes and move out. Darkseids ship will be in optimal position shortly." Batman said wanting to get things moving along, for if he didn't leave soon he wouldn't be able to make himself.
With that everyone gave their last hugs and kisses as they said what could potentially be their last goodbye. To say tears were present was an understatement, no one wanted to part with all that was going on. But unfortunately it was because of that they had to. So without turning around the Justice League members not staying behind made their way to the Zeta Tubes and one by one teleported. The last to go was Batman, but before he could move forward Dick shouted.
"I love you daddy!" Dick sobbed out from Catwoman's arms.
For a moment Batman stood still, using every ounce of self restraint to not turn around.
"I love you too Dick." Bruce managed to get out as he cried through his mask.
With that he went through the Zeta Tube and disappeared as he joined all the Justice Dads going to war for their babies.