They had only been in the vehicle for around three minutes as Catwoman was hectically driving the Batmobile as fast as she could to a location where Superman, Batman and Jimmy can recover.
Superman was lying unconscious on the backseat while Lois held on to him for comfort. Jimmy, despite being beaten himself, looked to his best friend with worry in his eyes.
"Is he okay?" Jimmy asked.
"I think he's passed out." Lois replied. She looked to her unconscious boyfriend with plea in her eyes. "Please stay with me." She took his hand as tears fell from her eyes. "Please."
Catwoman pushed a few buttons on the car's deck to make a call. "Alfred."
"Miss Kyle? Did you steal the car again?"
"Alfred, as much as I love your sense of humour, this is serious." Catwoman said. "I need you to prepare your kit! Batman, Superman and Jimmy are injured. They'll need your assistance."
"I'm sorry, are you insinuating that you're bringing Mr Olsen and Superman to the batcave?"
"I think I am." Catwoman retorted.
"Miss Kyle, I'm sure that the hospital can handle Mr Olsen just fine."
"Alfred, according to Lois…" Batman coughed. "…Bane knows Superman's identity. If we take Mr Olsen to the hospital…" Batman coughed again.
"Save your breath, I understand. Be there as soon as you can."
"Will do, Alfred." Catwoman hung up.
In that moment, Jimmy raised his hand. "Excuse me, Miss Kyle, wasn't it? I have two questions. Did you say batcave? And was that guy on the other end Bruce Wayne's butler?"
"Save your questions for later." Catwoman replied as she continued to drive the car.
She drove the car through the city, managing to avoid hitting cars, pedestrians, lamp posts, fire hydrants and other stuff.
Soon, she was driving the vehicle outside of the city vicinities and through a dark forest, the only source of light being the headlights of the Batmobile, the light coming from the moon and the city lights poking through the tree.
As Catwoman drove further through the forest, it only seemed to keep getting darker and misty. but Lois wasn't focused on that, she was more focused on her boyfriend still passed out. And he had been for the last 12 minutes. She kept checking his pulse to see if it was still there and thankfully it was.
"Is he…" Jimmy asked.
"Alive." Lois responded.
Batman however, despite all the pain, had one thing focused on his mind. "Robin…Robin…Dick." He mumbled.
Soon, Catwoman veered off the road down a what looked to be a footpath. "Hey! You're veering off the road!" Jimmy hosted.
"I know!" Catwoman said.
"You could hit someone!" Jimmy argued.
"I….Know!" Catwoman retorted.
Soon, she drove the Batmobile off the path and towards what looked like a waterfall. "Are we crashing through the waterfall?" Jimmy asked.
"No, we're going through it." Catwoman replied.
"And crashing against the rocks behind it?!" Lois exclaimed. "Superman will survive that, we won't!"
"I might be a cat burglar in my spare time, but I need you to trust me." Catwoman said.
"Wait, what?!" Lois exclaimed.
"Do you want Superman to die or not?!" Catwoman shouted.
But before either Lois or Jimmy could respond, they saw that they were close to hitting the waterfall. They shield themselves to brace for impact, but instead of hitting a wall, they were still driving.
They reluctantly opened their eyes and looked out the window to see that Catwoman was driving down a tunnel.
Lois and Jimmy looked at each other with blank stares over how they reacted. Soon, Catwoman parked the car right on a platform.
The batcave itself was a huge base. There was a ginormous computer with multiple screens on, long spiral stares that lead upwards, iterations of bat suits in display cases, a red telephone on display, a ginormous dinosaur, a giant joker card, a marble penguin statue and a ginormous penny.
They however, didn't have time to admire the batcave as they were more focused on getting Batman and Superman to an operating table.
Alfred appeared dressed in a surgical gown, a face mask, a cap and surgical gloves. "Get them in, quickly!"
Catwoman helped Batman get out of the Batmobile and began to help him towards the operating table; While Jimmy and Lois were helping the unconscious Superman get to his own.
"Please carefully place them on the table." Alfred requested as he put on a pair of goggles. "I might not know anything about Superman's biology, but I do suggest it'd be best that we be not so reckless."
"Bruce Wayne's butler is a medic?" Jimmy remarked.
Alfred approached Jimmy. "I was a medic for 12 years at the SAS before I became the Wayne family butler and Batman's criminal accomplice."
Catwoman chuckled. "Still know how to hit those jokes, Al."
"How are they, Mr Pennyworth?" Lois asked.
"I'm about to take a look." Alfred replied. "But first, I wish to check Master Olsen."
Alfred tapped the goggles attached to his eyes and used them to analyse Jimmy's wounds. It didn't take long for the butler to come to a conclusion.
"Surprisingly, no damaged organs or broken bones, but those bruises and cuts could do some work." Alfred then looked to Catwoman. "Where's Robin?"
Catwoman sighed sadly. "I'm sorry, Al. He fought Bane while Miss Lane got Superman out."
Alfred became alarmed. "No! Don't say it, Miss Kyle."
"I'm hoping he isn't dead, but at this point it's wishful thinking." Catwoman replied. "Who knows what he's doing to him."
Alfred sighed sadly. "Oh no. Mourning will have to wait. I need to get to work. Miss Lane, there is a first aid kit in the cabinet in the kitchen. It's up the spiral staircase, out of the grand clock, take a left past the portrait of Silas Wayne, then a right turn down the corridor and on the left is the kitchen where the first aid kit is located on the second cabinet on the left."
"Alright." Lois said. "Please take care of Superman."
Alfred placed a hand on Lois' shoulder and exhaled. "He is an alien so I don't know if I'll be able to do everything, but I will try my best to make sure he recovers safely."
Lois, despite knowing the risks, gave the butler a thankful smile. "Thanks, Mr Pennyworth."
"Please, Miss Lane, I insist you call me Alfred." The butler said.
"Thanks Alfred." Jimmy said. "Me and Lois will get out of your hair." He and Lois began walking out of the batcave together. With Catwoman following them from behind.
Once they left, Alfred approached Batman's body and began to analyse him. All Batman could muster through all his pain was muttering. "Dick…Dick…."
In that moment, Alfred injected something into Batman's neck. "Don't worry Master Bruce, a little anaesthetic. I will do everything I can."
A few minutes after leaving the cave, Jimmy was sitting on the breakfast bar while Lois was searching for the first aid kit. But due to her height, she had to use a chair help reach to the cabinet.
"So…It appears you and Clark had an interesting adventure while I was missing." Jimmy remarked.
"Yeah. We had to team up with Batman to find you." Lois explained.
"I know it's kind of wrong for me to say since I was captured, but I'm jealous." Jimmy said.
Lois smiled. "To be honest, it was kind of fun. I knocked out Roman Sionis of the Sionis crime family." She eventually found the first aid kit.
Jimmy looked amazed. "I'm sorry, you did what?"
"Just to save Robin's life." Lois instantly became saddened upon mentioning his name. She felt guilty about not doing anything to save Robin's life. Sure, she did save her boyfriend's life, but she couldn't have at least done something to save his as well.
"You seem sad." Jimmy said.
Lois sighed sadly as she closed the cabinet. "I got to work with Batman's sidekick, Robin. And, I think him and I grew this sort of big sister and little brother bond. This is going to hurt a little." She poured a little bit of disinfectant on a cotton ball. She gently dabbed it on one of Jimmy's cuts, causing him to cringe.
"That hurt." Jimmy said.
"I warned you." Lois retorted.
"I know." Jimmy said.
"And how are you doing?" Lois asked.
Jimmy sighed. "Still in a lot of pain. Bane's second-in-command did a number on me. She kept hitting me all over my body." She dabbed a piece of cotton on his lip. "Knowing I was just a trap for Clark, I suppose it was for entertainment for her." He sighed sadly. "It's my fault he got hurt."
"Jimmy, you had no-"
"I should have stayed in Metropolis and rejected that invitation." Jimmy said. "Clark wouldn't be hurt, neither would Batman and Robin wouldn't be captured."
"Jimmy!" Lois interjected. "It wasn't your fault! We were just at the wrong place at the wrong time! Besides, Perry would have sent us anyway."
"I guess you're right." Jimmy said. "Sometimes I feel so useless. Clark has powers and you have military training. Me? I'm just a guy with a camera and an-Ow!"
Turns out, Lois had dabbed a cotton ball on Jimmy's stomach, without warning. "Sorry."
"It's okay." Jimmy said.
"Jimmy, don't think you're worthless, cause you aren't." Lois said. "You got your followers attention so I could plead with them to turn off their lights so Clark could beat Parasite and you found out those robots were weakened by the green space rock which Clark would use to stop that spaceship from destroying Earth." Lois placed her hand on Jimmy's shoulder. "Your more useful than you realise, Jimmy Olsen. Don't forget that."
Jimmy gave a slight smile. "I wish I could do more to help Clark."
Just then, Catwoman walked in, wearing a gown and a towel on her head. "You could help by calling him. I'm sure he's worried for you."
"And…Why are you still here?" Jimmy asked with a deadpan stare. "I am grateful you saved me, but aren't you still Catwoman?"
"A girl's gotta make a living." She retorted while digging through the fridge for a carton of milk. "I'm a thief with standards. Depending on who's who, I wouldn't leave them to die. Not even a nosy journalist."
"Hey!" Jimmy exclaimed.
"No offence." Selina said as she began drinking from the carton.
"So, are you like, an ally of Batman from time to time?" Lois asked.
"Like all good relationships, on again and off again." Selina replied. "Speaking of relationships, Miss Lane, I couldn't help but notice that you seemed a little close to Superman."
Lois laughed. "What?! No! What are you talking about?!"
"Like I said, close." Selina said.
"Close as in….Close friends?" Lois asked.
"Come on, you know what I'm implying." Selina said. "Are you cheating on Clark Kent on Superman?"
Lois, knowing that Clark's identity was at risk and the fact that Catwoman was a criminal, didn't wish to share his identity. "What? No! Are you kidding me?! I'm not cheating on my boyfriend with Superman! What a stupid accusation!"
Selina laughed. "I don't know what kind of idiot you play me for, but I know that Superman just has something that Mr Kent doesn't. If I knew you were dating Superman, I wouldn't have hit on him."
Lois narrowed her eyes at the cat burglar. "What?!"
Jimmy grabbed her shoulder and gritted his teeth. "Lois!"
Selina exhaled. "I knew it. I knew you and Superman were an item. A secret item. Hmmm, knowing this information, I could tell Clark Kent himself. Perhaps a little blackmail to get you to get your Daddy to spill military secrets." Lois gasped. "Oh sweetie, when you're part of the Gotham underworld, you essentially know everything about everyone. I know your Dad is a part of the military. Went missing after some alien invasion in Smallville, Kansas; Perhaps going rogue like he's Jason Bourne or maybe "
dead." Lois narrowed her eyes at the woman. "So Miss Lane, what's it gonna be? Telling Clark Kent or calling Daddy."
Getting angry with her pestering, Los tried to punch her, but Selina managed to catch her wrist in her hand and performed a cartwheel, causing her to knock her to the marble floor.
"LOIS!" Jimmy exclaimed.
Selina grinned at Lois as she groaned from the hard impact. "I'm kidding, Miss Lane. I just wanted to get a reaction out of you. And it worked." She let go of Lois' wrist and began walking out of the kitchen with her milk in hand. "I'm going to get some shuteye. Goodnight. See you in the morning."
Lois got off the floor, still groaning from the impact. She cracked her back and narrowed her eyes at the cat burglar as she walked away.
"I don't know what he sees in her." Lois said.
"Who?" Jimmy asked.
"Never mind." Lois responded. "I'll patch you up while I brew some soup." As Lois began to apply some band aids on Jimmy's cuts, the photographer began to look around the mansion with a curious expression.
"Hang on Lois, Bruce Wayne's butler is tending to Batman and Clark." Jimmy said.
"And?"
"We are in Wayne Manor." Jimmy gasped. "I just realised something! All the expensive gadgets, the fact Wayne's butler is working with him and his secret base is under Wayne Manor! I know what this means!"
Lois was surprised she didn't have to tell Jimmy that Bruce Wayne is Batman. "What?" Lois asked.
"It means, that Bruce Wayne is definitely…Funding Batman's crusade against crime!" Jimmy exclaimed. "I mean, I guessed Batman lived in a cave, but a cave in Bruce Wayne's basement?!"
Lois gave a cringed smile. "Well…You're right in a way."
Upstairs, Catwoman shook her head in disappointment, having heard Jimmy's theory. "And this guy is a millionaire."
Later, about half an hour later, Lois and Jimmy were sitting in the living room in front of the ginormous roaring fireplace. Lois was sitting in a ginormous chair eating some chicken soup. While Jimmy, wearing Lois' jacket, was eating his soup, standing up.
Just above the fireplace was a ginormous portrait of a young boy around eight years old, standing beside his parents. His father had a greying hair and a greying moustache; While his mother had short blonde hair.
"Why don't you sit down Jimmy?" Lois asked. "You probably need it."
"I don't feel comfortable sitting on that chair." Jimmy said. "I feel the eyes on that portrait are watching me."
Lois looked at the portrait. "Yeah, you do have a point. But, it's just a portrait. It's definitely not watching us."
Then, the duo heard footsteps coming towards them. They turned around to see Alfred approaching, removing the surgical gloves from his hands.
"How is he, Alfred?" Jimmy asked.
"Is he…Okay?" Lois asked, looking worried.
"I did everything I could." Alfred replied. "His alien biology is similar to our own besides his skin being rather impenetrable. Luckily, I think he will be able to make a stable recovery."
Lois gave Alfred a grateful smile. "Thank you so much. And what of Batman?"
"He's been through worse." Alfred replied. "I am however surprised how a sword through his shoulder managed to miss every artery."
"Can we see them?" Jimmy asked.
"I'm afraid it will be best you leave them alone for a brief period of time as they recover." Alfred suggested. "But if you wish to stay the night in order to be close to Mr Kent, there are spare pairs of sleepwear in your size as for you Master Olsen…I might have something that is just your size."
Lois smiled. "You're incredible, Mr Pennyworth."
"Alfred." The butler smiled back. "Please. Let's not keep things formal while we're here. We are in the manor, not a gala." He began to walk away but then stopped. "Oh, Miss Lane, if you're going to eat anywhere I suggest it not be on the armchairs. They were imported from Switzerland and cost Master Wayne a sum total of 43 thousand dollars. And on a reporter's salary, I don't you'd be able to pay the bill." He began to walk away, surprising Lois.
While Jimmy was pointing at the portrait like crazy. "He was watching us!"
Later, Lois had managed to find a pair of pyjamas that managed to fit her. They were a pair of grey shorts with a plain white crop top combo. She did question why there was a pair of these in her size, but she then remembered Bruce was essentially a lady's man and probably had a pair in every size.
The guest room itself was rather lavish. It had a ginormous bed, a desk, a flatscreen TV, a maroon red carpet, a ginormous window looking out to the sea and a maroon red bed.
She lied on the large and comfortable bed staring at the ceiling, thinking about Clark and what had happened to him. She had never seen Clark this broken and beaten before. Of all the people to almost kill him, a human terrorist on mutated steroids took him out.
She sighed sadly. "Please be okay, Clark."
Elsewhere, on the Mullusc, Bane was in the Captain's deck writing something down. He had been sitting on this chair for a while detailing the events of what had happened whilst Carla had snitched up his cut.
"For years I have trained and built up my body to be strong enough to take on a god. I did take on a god, but some form of intervention interjected. The government agent known as Slade Wilson blinded my opponent leading to a fight I consider underwhelming. I did end up getting a tad bit carried away. Who wouldn't when come face-to-face with Superman? I shall give him the time Mr Kent needs to recover and we will finishing our fight with one of us as the victor."
Upon finishing his entry, Bane closed his journal where he saw Carla standing beside the door frame with her arms folded. "I just got words from Miss Willis, Slade is gone."
"Deceased?"
"Gone." Carla emphasised the word. "They don't know where he could have gone."
"It doesn't matter." Bane replied. "He has no where to go with a broken spine." Bane stood up off his chair and approached her. "He won't be able to swim for us."
Carla grinned. "He'd be food for the sharks that's for sure. You still dissatisfied?"
"Of course I am." Bane replied. "There would have been a clear victor if it wasn't for him."
Carla held Bane by his mask. "You need some cheering up Jefe. Allow me."
Bane held Carla by the back. "Perhaps. I am due for some company after a long time."
Carla lifted Bane's mask up to reveal his mouth. There appeared to be a scar under his chin, a scar located over his lip and what looked to be a stitch on his cheek that looked recent.
Then, she and Bane began to share an intense kiss with one another, their hands rubbing all over their entire bodies. Carla, being careful to not tear one of Bane's tubes from his body.
Bane then slammed his second in command on his office table and removed his vest, revealing his muscular and heavily scarred body.
While Bane and Carla were tending to their own business, his crew were surveying the prisoners in the lower deck. Currently, the prisoners were Robin, Vicki Vale, Gordon and Lucius Fox; Whom were all stuck in a shipping container together with only a single lightbulb as their light source.
Vicki was trying to get reception on her phone, Gordon had his back rested against the wall, Lucius was sitting on the floor while the bruised Robin was currently pacing.
"So Bane of all people took down Superman?" Gordon queried.
"I can confirm." Robin replied. "And Batman was beaten badly by Livewire, Hagen, Walker and some other guy who I'm not sure was a part of Bane's crew."
"Just what we need." Gordon sighed. "By the way, what was that part about you crashing into my daughter's bedroom?"
Vicki groaned. "I can't get a signal!"
"We are trapped in a container, of course we aren't going to get signal." Lucius said.
"Well it's still worth a try!" Vicki retorted.
"I'm going to try and get us out." Robin said as he began to touch the doors. "Clearly it's locked from the outside, I could try and cut us out…" Robin sighed. "…But they took my belt."
"Well, just great!" Vicki exclaimed. "Just when I actually need help, you got no gadgets, Batman is out of commission and Superman is most likely dead!"
Lucius grinned. "I know I'm imprisoned, but I can't help but see the irony of the situation. You discredited Batman and Superman. Now, you're relying on their presence to get you out."
"Mr Fox, I think I understood the irony. You did not need to explain it!" Vicki argued.
Robin sighed as he paced around the container, wondering if Batman will ever come to his aid or if he would have to try and find his own way out with two of his most trusted allies and one of Bruce's exes. But so far, his hopes of getting out were fruitless.
Outside the container, two of Bane's goons were looking up to stare at the captain's cabin where they saw the lights were dimly lit and there was noise coming from there. What sounded like equipment being smashed specifically.
"Jefe y Carla están en ello otra vez." (Boss and Carla are at it again.) The goon said to another.
"Cómo consiguió un hombre como él, nunca lo entenderé." (How she got a man like him, I'll never understand.)
"Deberíamos irnos antes de que nos vean." (We should leave before they see us.)
"Suena como un plan." (Sounds like a plan.) They turned around upon hearing the unfamiliar voice to see none other than an unexpected stowaway.
And that stowaway turned out to be none other than Slade himself. Standing on his two legs and holding his swords with no kind of support. He didn't wear his mask, revealing his eye patch and smirk.
The armed men aimed their rifles at him. "Lay down your weapons or we will shoot!"
"Well, go ahead and shoot!" Slade said.
The armed men just took a glance at one another with confusion. "Did he…"
"We might miss, but we wanna tell Bane we tried." The two armed men began firing their rounds at Slade, managing to hit him.
They grinned with glee having hit their target. However, Slade wasn't even limping or shaking or even showing signs of collapsing. Then, all the bullets that they managed to hit Slade with, all jumped out of his body and landing on the deck. Even the cut from his cheek managed to heal up.
"¿Qué carajo?"
"It's amazing what the compound has unlocked." Slade grinned and charged towards the armed men. He used his swords to slice the muzzle of their rifles and kicked their chests with a pair of kicks.
Two more armed guards showed up with pistols this time. They began to shoot at Slade, hitting him. However, all the bullets popped out of him.
Then, they dropped their weapons and pulled out their knives. Slade an up to the female guard and began holding her by her neck, choking her. Her male ally, stabbed Slade in the back with his weapon. However, Slade seemed unaffected by them.
He activated an electrical device embedded on his palm and placed it on his chest, launching him backwards. He tossed the other one in the water.
However, a few more came in with cattle prods and managed to get some hits on him. They began to jab at him, causing the electrical shock that was coursing through his body to drop to his knees and to drop his swords.
They kept shocking him until he grabbed one of the prods and used it against one of them. He kicked the other two in their legs before using the prod to shock the two remaining ones.
Once he was finished, he tossed it aside and picked up his swords. "Who wants to bring me to Bane?!" Slade asked.
Suddenly, Bane's remaining soldiers all arrived on the deck Slade was on and aimed their weapons at him. Rifles, pistols, shotguns, knives, cattle prods and even grenade launchers.
Instead of being intimidated, Slade just gave a smirk. "A little excessive don't you think?"
"There's too many of us." A female soldier with a shotgun said.
"I don't think you seem to understand the situation." Slade said. "I'm not surrounded by you, you're surrounded by me." He spread his arms out, tempting the soldiers to attack him.
But before either of them could, the sound of a shotgun blast was heard. Everyone lowered their weapons to look up at what caused the noise.
There, standing outside the captain's cabin, wearing nothing but his mask and holding a shotgun, was Bane. "If anyone is willing to explain the noise, speak now or the next shot is going through someone's head."
"Bane!" Slade yelled. "Sorry to catch you at an inconvenient time."
Bane seemed surprised by Slade's presence. "Wilson. You healed quicker than the average human."
Slade sheathed his swords and pulled a pocket knife from his shoe. He used the knife to cut his cheek. Then, the cut on his cheek healed up.
Bane seemed intrigued by this reveal. "You've unlocked your meta gene. How did you get your hands on one of the compounds?"
"One was on the floor." Slade replied. "You'd ought to be careful."
"What do you want?" Bane asked. "Want me to break your spine again? Or tear you in two to see if you can put yourself back together again?"
Slade laughed. "No. No. I want something from you. I want one of the prisoners you have."
Bane seemed baffled. "Prisoners?"
"Yes. In exchange, I will leave Superman to you." Slade explained. "I only wanted him out of my way to get to my actual goal. The Batman."
Bane lowered his gun. "You want his sidekick don't you?"
Slade grinned. "They were right about you being clever. So, what's it going to be? I have Robin, I leave Superman to you."
Bane began pondering the deal. "Hmmm, your deal will suffice. First, let me robe myself." He returned to the captain's quarters to get dressed while Slade grinned with glee.
He was pleased that his plan for his revenge on Bruce was going as smoothly as it was. Then, blood began to drip from his nose that he wiped away with his hand like it was nothing. If only he knew what this meant.