I do not own Batman/Bruce Wayne, Martian Manhunter/J'ohn J'ones, Alfred Pennyworth, Freddie, or Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent. D.C. does. Please enjoy for free.

Close to Noon: Bruce's Bedroom Wayne Manor: Eleven Years After Waynes' Deaths

The looming presence over him woke Bruce up. He expected Clark for a split second. As he peeled his eyes open, though, his instincts warned him otherwise.

He met the gaze of red glowing eyes. Anger emanated from them. He could also hear it in the words "Why did you keep from me the deal Waller made you?"

His gaze locked with the Martian's, Bruce sat up, swung his legs over the opposite side of the bed, and stood up. Then he turned the rest of his body to face the warrior. Instinct urged him to do so. Reason told him neither mass nor space mattered to a Martian. "Can I ask you about your current thoughts before I answer?"

"Millions continuing to experience injustice is the price for my freedom."

"That's why."

"Are you planning on betraying me?"

"No."

"So, you betray your own city instead?"

"If I took her deal, and Waller forced the investigation, prosecution, and incarceration of Gotham's criminals, I'd be taking advantage of her dictatorship."

"But if the crimes are 'real' that they are prosecuted for, and only corruption blocks the flow of justice, let her unblock it! How can you chose one over so many? Even if numbers matter not, they are your own people! You've continually reminded me of my duty to mine!"

The Martian began to stride up and down the room parallel to the bed. Bruce watched. Then he spoke in a low, even voice. "If every individual can be treated unjustly for the greater good, justice doesn't exist."

The Martian turned burning eyes on him. "Justice 'doesn't' exist! Both our families would still be alive if it did!"

Bruce flinched. John turned his face away. His head and whole body sagged. "How can you, and how can you expect me, to believe differently?"

"At the very least, we should strive for justice. I've been trying to give you the same rights I believe a human should get unlike others. Are you truly going to be angry about that?"

John turned his burning gaze back on him. "'No.' I am in fact angry at you for doing to 'me' as I believe you do to 'others' Bruce."

The man stiffened. The Martian glared at him. "You keep your secrets, even while demanding others'. That'd be bad enough. But you also keep secrets 'about' others from them? What made you think I didn't have the 'right' to know what Waller said to you?!"

"It was an offer made to me, 'about' you, yes, but 'to' me."

"You didn't think I had the right to have knowledge of it let alone a say in the matter?"

"I didn't think it wise."

"Why?!"

"Because you've been isolated for years! You've been un-tethered from place, persons, a single name! There is no way your mind is in the right state to make that sort of decision!"

"Yours is?"

Bruce's eyes widened. Then they narrowed. His fists clenched at his sides. The alien went on. "Bruce, you need to save people, because you failed to save your parents ... in your own mind at least. I was the first person you saved after that. You attach to me the idea, not only of success, but purpose. Is it really rights and individuality that caused you to turn your back on saving a whole city, or was it 'that' which unconsciously led you to sacrifice the good of millions for me?"

"So, you're saying you're saner wanting to turn yourself in to experience torture and experimentation?"

"Instead, I go to a planet struggling to support the Martians already there and leave millions in a dying city?"

"That's the sort of decision I didn't want to you to wrestle with."

"So, you wrestle with it alone instead?"

"I didn't choose to. Waller gave me the choice. I chose not to share it."

Both were interrupted by the sound of a car pulling up. The Martian looked out the window "It is Alfred. And he is nervous."

The Martian turned invisible and intangible. Bruce grit his teeth, threw on a pair of pants, and went out his window.

Noon: Front of Wayne Manor: Eleven Years After Waynes' Deaths

Even as Freddie and Alfred opened their car doors and got out, John became visible again in front of them. Both men started, Alfred a little less, the Martian strode toward Freddie. "You aren't surprised 'enough' to see me. What did you tell Alfred about my brother?"

Freddie stuffed his hands in his pockets and tried to lower and gentle his voice. "Listen Ole Chap, maybe you should sit down somewhere or have a drink and let us get to know each other before I share any bad news."

"Tell me. Or I will take it from your mind."

Alfred hissed as he began to stride forward. "Now, see here ..." The Martian lifted a hand toward him. Alfred froze in place. His eyes widened at the sensation of "something" holding him still.

John's eyes were glowing brightly. Bruce was creeping silently but quickly along the roof behind and above the alien causing Freddie to glance up. John shouted. "Tell me!"

Freddie's gaze snapped back to him. He swallowed, "Someone else ... who wasn't there for it, said he died. She saw ... pictures."

The Martian drew back slightly. He let his hand fall back to his side releasing Alfred. His voice was quieter, but strained as he asked, "How?"

Freddie flinched. He clenched his teeth. He didn't speak, but the Martian's eye-ridge rose. He sucked in a breath. Then his whole body sagged. "Never mind. I read your mind."

He turned invisible. Bruce dropped from the roof and landed in a couch. Then he jogged over. "What did he just find out?"

Alfred and Freddie turned to him. As Freddie tried to slow his racing heart with deep slow breaths, Alfred answered him. "He just found out his brother was burned to death."

Bruce's eyes widened. Then he felt a slight tremor in the ground through his bare feet. He swallowed. "I'm contacting Superman."

Lunch Break: Metropolis Offices Daily Planet: Eleven Years After Waynes' Deaths

Clark Kent was finishing his proofreading of an article before going to lunch alone since his colleague had already left. Then an "error" message popped up on his screen. In the last two letters, spelled out in shade of dark grey just slightly lighter than the rest of the letters were the words "Come now."

A Quarter after Noon: Sky Over Wayne Manor: Eleven Years After Waynes' Deaths

Superman looked down and used his x-ray vision to get an understanding of the situation. He didn't see his fellow alien right away, so he widened his perspective and made it deeper. It was then he saw him in a deep, out of the way, unused cavern. He was shouting and it was shaking. Superman's eyes widened. In seconds, going through the tunnels around Wayne Manor, he reached the Martian. "Moe? What's going on?"

"You should leave Clark. It is not safe to be near me right now."

Superman gave a slight shrug. "I think I can take it. Did ... you get bad news about your brother, or niece?"

"My brother ..."

Superman's face fell. "I'm sorry ..."

"He is dead. He was burned alive."

Superman flinched, but he remained silent. The Martina went on. "'I' allowed that to happen to him. 'I' buried him in ice making him weak when they found him. I promised myself, our parents, and 'him' I would always protect him as the weaker of us ... and I failed."

Superman took a deep breath before speaking into the following silence. "You're not the only one."

John turned red glowing eyes to him. "What do you mean?"

Superman took a long step over to sit on a broken stalagmite not asking how it got broken into an almost perfect seat for him before facing the Martian. He bent over and whispered in a conspiratorial manner. "Don't tell Bruce I told you this ... It's supposed to be a secret between the two of us."

Superman looked over his shoulder and listened hard for a few moments to see if he could detect footsteps or breathing and the heartbeat of someone besides John and himself coming from close by. Then he looked back and met the gaze of red intent eyes. "He once died because of me."

The Martian's browridge lowered. His mouth tightened. Superman shrugged. "I know, I resuscitated him, but for four and a half minutes, I thought I'd killed him."

"How?"

Superman took another deep breath. He bowed his head and his shoulders sagged. "Asphyxiation ... We were in a place with sunlight, so I was fine, but there was no atmosphere. He had a supply of air with him. I did too. I gave mine to him, which bought us some time, but ... it ran out."

"How was it your fault?"

"I ... we went somewhere together and did something there. When we accomplished it, he thought we should both go home. I wanted to stay, pretty much told him I would whatever he decided."

The Martian's voice changed from suspicion and doubt to understanding, "He stayed with you."

"Yeah ..." Superman chuckled. "I ... thought it was so weird. I was young, getting stronger in my powers as I reached my peak. I had just learned ... well ... let's simply say I was getting a pretty big head. I thought it was 'cute' he thought he was looking after me ..."

"I can relate ..."

"But ... it wasn't so much he didn't know I was strong. He just realized I wasn't 'wise' yet. And there were times ... he'd kill me if he knew I was saying this to someone ... there 'were' times I actually got physically weak ... and ... he was there for me."

"I can also relate to that."

"And I realized all that before he gripped my arms and gasped ... I could see with my perfectly functioning microscopic 'and' x-ray vision ..." Superman swallowed. "There was nothing for him to breathe ... It was so hard ... hours before he'd been telling me what would happen. He said to remember what he was telling me then, when he lost control of himself, that no matter what he did or looked like ... I wouldn't be able to help him ... and it wouldn't be my fault. I think he meant it, but it was a lie. If I'd gone home, he would have too. Then he wouldn't have 'been' there. But I told him we'd both be fine. 'I' thought I knew what I was talking about. I kept telling him we'd both be found and both be fine. I kept telling him that right up until ... not the light ... It's not the 'light' that goes out ... it ... it's the focus: the soul behind them ... it left."

"But you got it back."

Superman lifted his head slightly, but not enough to meet the Martian's gaze before responding. "I did. So, I can't fully tell you I know what you're going through. But ... I'll never forget, he'll never forget, what my choices did to him."

"But it was his choice to stay with you."

"Yeah but ... I might not have realized it then, but you know ... he ... he's not always nice to you, but he never turns his back on you not when he thinks you need him."

"He has on his city."

Superman froze. "Oh. So, you know about that ..."

The Martian narrowed his eyes. "And apparently so do you."

"Um, yeah, I overheard. We both decided not to tell you."

"Because you both thought I couldn't handle it."

"Look, it's not like he'd have told me either. He wouldn't have told anybody. Because he's Bruce ... Sure, he accepts help sometimes, but the hardest things ... he always 'tries' to take those on himself, whenever he can."

"But not always?"

"If something needs to be done for the greater good ... and a fellow hero can do it, and he can't, he'll let them."

"Yet, he didn't tell me about Waller's deal?"

"Well, you've certainly acted heroically. But you've never taken an oath to be the champion of the civilians of earth or the galaxy have you?"

"No, I suppose I haven't."

"If you'd done that, Bruce might have told you. He'd consider you a hero with the same responsibilities as him then, the same mission."

"Which is?"

"To get between the public and what will harm them that they can't fight off themselves."

"I see."

"Not that you aren't capable, but ... this ... isn't your home ... is it?"

"No ... I suppose not ... But I was that on Mars ... once."

Superman gave a sad smile. "Maybe you can be again."

"Perhaps ..."

"You ... still might be needed by your niece. If you become anything like my pa was to me ... You'll be her hero."

"If she lives ... if I can find her."

Superman sighed. "I'm sorry I couldn't find out more about that."

"You've done more than enough Clark."

"Um, since I'm wearing this ... maybe call me Superman or Kal El? Bruce is really paranoid about us only being called our hero titles while we're in our hero attire. Also, he's gonna be mad enough as it is if he found out all the secrets I've been sharing. Besides, it might be nice if, as fellow aliens, we could call each other by our alien names sometimes."

The Martian gave a small smile. "Very well Kal El ..."

What do you think now?

God bless

ScribeofHeroes