#where the loudest bellows would soften down to nothing by the time it reached me

[charcoalowl]

Can somebody please take me to the opera tonight. Please.

[fyeahwonderbat]

In the Middle of a Broken Constellation

Previous Title: In Another Life (Prologue) Pairing: WonderBat (Wonder Woman x Batman) Rating: 14A / T Universe: N/A - Reader’s Choice

Her fingers ran along the space bar of the JLA’s computer as she mindlessly walked the length of the desk. Screens were lit up with different news outlets, covering a multitude of stories, but none that required the involvement of the League. No, they needed to pick and choose when to dabble in the problems of the world. But she couldn’t deny the itch that crawled beneath her skin, beneath her civilian attire when she wished she was dressed for battle, begging her to find something to occupy her worried mind. Something beyond the antiques of her day job that reminded her of her origins, something more tantalizing that could give her heroine heart a newfound reason for its unsteady rhythm.

Though if the truth be told, there was most likely nothing in the world as occupying as the fear nestled inside of her for the past week or so.

“Huh.” A soft sound of surprise echoed in her ear from across the room. Mildly curious as to who could be lurking, her upper body twisted ever so gently so she could look into the eyes of none other than Kal-El, wearing the facade of Clark Kent.

Uninspired to answer, she waited for him to elaborate upon his one word note.

A smile befell his chiseled face, softening his expression to a childlike degree, as he elaborated. “I never would have took Wonder Woman for a worrier.”

That remark gave her pause. “Maybe Wonder Woman isn’t, but Diana has been known to feel nervous over many things.”

“Such as?” Asked Superman, lending her his Metahuman ear to listen to her woes. The way he walked into the computer room was much more sincere than his opening comment had made him out to be and it allowed her to see the sincerity in his intentions. A knot she hadn’t known was resting her back began to loosen as she watched him approach the desk. Her breaths were lighter one she was able to drop her shoulders, Diana noticed immediately.

“I’m sure you know the struggle - balancing your personal life with the life of a hero.” She sought empathy from him, not sympathy or pity. It seemed inevitable that, of all people, Kal could provide her with that.

The way he placed his hands on his hips wasn’t domineering. Instead, it seemed as though he was trying to steady himself as if the reminder of his double life added more weight onto his back. “It’s definitely something that took some getting used to. Especially when I had to learn the difference between when it’s appropriate for Superman to save the day and when only Clark should.”

The curious expression that crossed her face was much too honest and oh so swift that she couldn’t reign her emotion in before he saw it.

Chuckling, he offered an example of what he was trying to get across to her. “When people like us want to help, it feels natural to dive in and use whatever powers we have at our disposal if it means we can save someone from some tragedy. Coming into my powers, I was terrified of what made me different from the people around me. But as I got older, I had to teach myself that even though I had all of these unique gifts that I used when I was Superman, there were still things that only Clark Kent could accomplish on his own, with even just his words.”

The longer he spoke, the more Diana realized what he was getting at. When he came into the room, he had already surmised the cause of her melancholy and was merely trying to approach her in a way that sounded neutral and unassuming.

But he was one of the loudest people at the Founder meeting that took place nearly two weeks ago, and his words had done quite a lot of damage when he was dressed in his Kryptonian attire.

It was tricky to decide whether or not she wanted to call him out on his underlying intention or if she should let the facade of kindness he wore stay in tack. “How do you do it, then?”

Clark seemed taken aback by her question and he grew a tad sheepsih. “I wouldn’t presume to think I had something to teach you about living with humans, Diana. I know you’ve survived a great deal on your own.”

“Perhaps I missed the point of the story.” She mused, hoping she didn’t offend him by admitting such a thing outright.

Kal straightened and took her confusion as a challenge. “What I meant was, I understand that it can feel as though there are things you want to fix in the world when you’re already known as a superhero to people. There’s a type of indescribable restraint that it takes to not lord yourself over others when you think you have the answer to all of their problems. Choosing when to be inactive, I think, is one of a superhero’s greatest and most underappreciated skills.”

“Even when the person you want to lord over is considered a superhero themselves?”

The shock on his face was nothing like the nearly smug expression she had seen him wear when he was standing in the doorway, trying to get her attention moments ago. He was startled that she had seen through his coy demeanour and it rendered him a tad embarrassed. “Well, I… had imagined that you were just as concerned as I was about him.”

“And the fact that we haven’t seen him since,” That was the first time she spoke her greatest concern aloud and it instantaneously amplified her anxiety. But Diana hoped that if she reacted fast enough, she could keep Kal from feeling the same touch of fear. “Are you saying that you’re considering going to see him, in Gotham?”

She might have been the first to speak of his plan out loud too, as Kal seemed as though he was suddenly eager to fly through the roof if it meant putting his plan into motion. “I think Bruce could understand why we’d visit him now. We gave him weeks to solve the problem or even provide us with an explanation as to what this sludge could be, but he’s been ghosting us since that meeting.”

Diana felt her vision become unfocused as she fell into her memories and recalled that powerful clash for the umpteenth time since it had happened.

“It’s spreading, Batman.” The Flash’s announcement was for the entire room of the founding members to hear, but his stare bore into the lenses on Bruce’s cowl.

Seated at the round table in the midst of the hall sat the original six members of the Justice League. Diana’s position allowed for her to see the silent rage that barely stayed beneath the surface of Barry’s maskless face, the grinding of his teeth visible in the corners of his jaw. Given that Bruce sat to her right, and that he was fully dressed in his costume, she couldn’t make out his reaction to the obvious anger being directed towards him.

The air he emanated, however, implied that Bruce was much too focused to offer any type of apology. “Where?” Was all he said in response, making the room much more tense than it needed to be.

“To Central City!” He bellowed as he tossed a newspaper into the center of the table from the Central City PIcture News. No one reached to read the paper, as Bruce had briefed them all on the sludge vaguely last week. Diana remembered him mentioning how it was turning Gothamites into monsters, how it had infiltrated the sewage to the city.

And with the floods happening across the country this summer...

“Metropolis, too.” As if the meeting wasn’t verging on dangerous territory, Superman chimed in with a tone that implied he was just as furious as Barry was.

All Diana could do was watch as Bruce looked over at Kal, silent and observing, assessing how best to respond to the fury of two Metahumans. Nevertheless, she wasn’t at all surprised to hear that he chose to honour his own feelings when he said, “Oracle and I have been analyzing the sludge repeatedly, and even though we haven’t found an antidote yet, we think that--”

“Oh, come on!” Barry leapt out of his seat and banged a fist on the table.

“Barry.” Cyborg chided gently, trying to help his friend stay calm and collected.

But The Flash’s mind was racing too fast for him to listen to any advice. “People in my city are now transforming into these...boil-covered creatures, and there’s still nothing else you can tell us? We gave you time to solve this - I trusted that you and your computer whiz would be able to take care of this.”

“Right,” Bruce bit out. “When it was only my problem.”

That response froze the room momentarily as the implication was processed. Then, it was Cyborg’s turn to stand and take The Flash’s side. “Now hold on, Batman. You won’t let us help you. You’ve barred all of us from entering Gotham City unless you call us yourself. That’s why it was only your problem.”

Despite their rising stance against him, Bruce remained seated next to Diana, which was the only method of his that she approved of. Then, he removed any and all faith she had in him when he shot back, “I let you examine the sludge.”

The pure disbelief shown on the humanistic side of Victor’s face was rooted in disgust. As if Bruce couldn’t disillusion the League anymore than he had in the past, it seemed with every new conflict, he found another method with which to destroy some of his own good standing. “And I told you it was complex, but that there was something ancient found in the compound that I couldn’t read.”

“So then I took it to Oracle” - this was the moment the Batman rose from his chair and stood tall against his fellow Founders - “and we are working on it. You can examine the sample I gave you again, or give it to The Flash, if you want. But I can’t make the answer magically appear in front of me, so perhaps you should sit down and let us finish this meeting.”

The aggression, the fear, the relentless stance against the Batman, there was something behind Barry’s rebellion, Victor’s addition. With the sludge spreading to other major cities in the United States, to places that mattered to the League, it meant that there was a goal with this argument and it dawned on Diana suddenly.

So, she stated it as diplomatically as she could. “They can’t move forward with the meeting until they have some hope of helping their people, Batman. They want to help you locate the source of the sludge in Gotham--”

“Absolutely not.”

“Are you serious!?” Barry screeched. This time when he threw his fist down, the lightning that accompanied his powers sparked around his hand when he crashed into the table, nearly knocking it into the ground. Now, all six of them stood as Arthur caught the curve of it on his lap and winced. He glared at The Flash as he stood, to which he received a gentle, “Sorry.”

However, Arthur didn’t focus on him. Instead he shook his head and directed his irritation towards Bruce too. “You are such a piece of work, Batman. This problem is bigger than you now. Get over yourself and let us help you.”

“You can’t honestly expect us to standby and wait for you, do you?” Clark’s voice was firm, his mouth a flat line of disappointment on his face. “We can’t simply tell the citizens of our cities to sit back and wait. They put their faith in us and if we have nothing to tell them, it could cause hysteria the longer this problem drags on.”

But to counter his point, Bruce argued. “How do you think I’ve been handling this mess so far?” His voice was clipped, his stance strong, but he stood alone against four other members of the Justice League and all Diana could do was watch. She agreed that they should be allowed entry to Gotham City but adding her voice to the frey when she had no city to worry about like the other Founders did was an unnecessary addition to the catastrophe that was this meeting.

Then, the catastrophe imploded. Clark raised his left hand and determined for them all, “We should bring it to a vote.”

The anger Barry had showcased was nothing compared to the unadulterated outrage coming from the Batman next to her. “NO!” He screamed, he demanded, but his defiance fell on deaf ears.

“I agree,” Was The Flash’s obvious answer, but he chose to elaborate. “Now that Iris’ father has been infected, I can’t let your obsessive, control freak behaviour stand between me and a cure. I vote we go to Gotham.”

“Stop this! This isn’t how we work!” Bruce fought back as if he was about to snap and lose complete control over himself.

But Cyborg still remained as calm as could be as he lifted his left hand as well. “Then how do we work? Are we supposed to let you dictate how we save the world? If you were in Superman’s or The Flash’s shoes right now, you know they’d let you into their cities if it meant saving everyone. How come you get to decide the fate of thousands of people like this?”

Diana felt those were fair counter arguments for Bruce to consider, but the seething she heard was nearly carnal, and much like an animal being backed into a corner, he only cared about fighting for himself. “If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t even be here! You wouldn’t have all of my technology, my resources, everything you need to save the day that you didn’t have before. And this is the thanks I get!?”

“Dammit Batman, you know this isn’t about you!” That was the moment in which Kal lost control of his words. Like the force of nature he was, he couldn’t contain himself as he went after his best friend. “You always do this - you take on more than you can handle and make things more complicated than they need to be! There are five us of here offering you our help and you’re so painfully stubborn that you could end up costing people their lives, all so you can be the king of your castle! I always believed that your methods could be tolerated if it was for the betterment of other people but this is just insanity.”

Even Diana was stunned into silence by the way Kal read Bruce for the room. Their bond was like that of brothers, tumultuous and challenging at times but typically routed in commonality, in their hearts. For him to hurl such heated words at his closest friend, it could only mean that the strain of choosing between honouring their bond and honouring Metropolis waged war inside of him, and the latter desire won out.  

He most likely had to choose between respecting Bruce’s wishes and worrying for Lois’ safety.

That was yet another reason why she could think clearly as the other members fought around her - not only had she no city to protect, but she also had no one specifically to fear for.

Nothing drove her beside her desire to simply protect everyone, including an angry bat from the clutches of his fellow Founders.

But her opinion mattered not. After a lengthy pause that only allowed the visceral energy stew around the circular table, Bruce detonated. “Everyone here knows Superman is weak to Kryptonite, and I know at least one weakness for every single one of you too. If you come anywhere near Gotham City, be ready for a fight that you won't walk away from alive.”

And with a dramatic toss of his cape, Batman departed from the Founders Meeting without any concern for the shouts and protests that chased him out. Prideful to the very end, he most likely headed directly for the teleporter to take him back to his BatCave, away from all the supposed resources there at the JLA headquarters, ready to return to work in the privacy of his sanctuary. Diana sighed heavily as she sat amongst the bickering men, praying to every Greek god she could think of in the hopes that the confrontation she had just sat through was the worse that this mysterious, destructive sludge could do to them.

As her memory of the altercation whipped by, Diana cringed internally when she recalled the threats that Bruce had made. It was so very dramatic, which was signature Batman behaviour, but after all of the work that was put into forming the Justice League, it seemed so very asinine to her that he would demolish everything for the sake of his sovereignty.

“If the sludge hadn’t begun to retreat on its own,” Kal seemed prepared to answer a question she had yet to ask. “I would have hunted this Oracle down myself, to really see if they could give us the answers we were searching for.”

“The sludge disappeared?” Diana inquired with evident astonishment.

When he nodded, he looked as though he wasn’t entirely appeased. “Shortly after that meeting, yeah. There are still people infected by it, but quarantining them is no longer a major concern, since their numbers aren’t increasing. The real emergency is the fact that we had to shut off the water to the city. Aquaman is helping us collect the sludge in order to contain what’s out there, but if only we had the antidote - if we could add it to our water filtration systems to guarantee that Metropolis and Central City are safe too, then we can move beyond this mess.”

The longer he went on for, the deeper his frown sank. This conversation was proving Kal’s earlier point, whether or not he intended for his words to do so. There was absolutely nothing that Superman could do right now to identify the cure for the infection that had transformed innocent people into these abominations. If there was, he would have solved the matter by now. But given that neither Barry’s forensics degree or Victor’s expansive technological mind could provide any kind of solution, all of the powers in all of the world that Superman possessed were rendered useless in a crisis such as this.

Only Kal-El, Clark Kent himself had a chance of appealing to the heart of Bruce Wayne in the hopes of getting his hands on an antidote.

Would Bruce really be so spiteful as to withhold a cure from defenceless people because of how his fellow Founders offended his pride?

There was only one way to find out.

Diana rose to her feet and offered her friend a confident smile in the hopes of lifting his spirits. “Then for the sake of your people - and the hope of ending this petty feud - I say we visit Bruce, immediately.”

That was what Kal had implied he had wanted the entire time they had been talking, and yet, there was a wide-eyed moment that made Diana wonder if he was genuinely terrified of Bruce, more so than he was scared for the citizens of Metropolis and Central City.

Thankfully, he let the moment pass and nearly flew out of his seat. “And we talk to him in smaller numbers.” Was Kal’s way of insinuating that they didn’t need anyone else aside from the two of them to handle the Batman.

Diana tried her best not to chuckle at such an obvious detail to their plan. “I think having the two of us go is already a recipe for disaster.”

“Well, if Bruce is still stewing, then neither of us will be gentle with one another, yeast of all, me.”

For the first few seconds, as they walked towards the teleporter down the hall, neither of them spoke. But Diana couldn’t stop herself from finding some amusement in the awkwardly timed pun and snickered against her better judgement. “What on Earth…?”

“I thought that was well timed, since we were using food-related phrases anyway. And being a farm boy from Smallville, I know how to handle my wheat.” There was no shame in his voice, but rather, pride. Given that there weren’t many opportunities to see such a humorous side to any of her fellow heroes, least of all the almighty Superman, the rarity of the moment was most likely coaxed a laugh out of her.

Still, the absurdity of his comedy was the perfect elixir to her rather pensive mood.

Feeling lighter than air for the first time in a week, Diana was more than excited to carry on their silly conversation. “I didn’t know you were from Smallville. I just assumed you had always lived in Metropolis.”

“Really? Well, once this is all over, I’ll have to take you by the farm. I’m sure Ma would love to meet you.”

“I’d love that too.”

“Just be ready to eat.” Now, it was his turn to laugh, as if his warning was much more sinister than one might assume.

Having seen more of Kal on the battlefield than she had in any personable sense, Diana felt as though it was so much easier to relate to him in this state. They were both improbable powerhouses for the League - mythological-like figures that people either revered or feared - but they each had a softer, more mortal heart beneath their durable skin. This insight into his personality when his defences were down wasn’t a surprise per se, but it was most definitely endearing.

The humming of the charged teleporter drew them out of the moment, ever so slowly. As Kal made a beeline for the control panel, typing in their coordinates with ease as if he had studied the BatCave’s entry code many times before, Diana walked directly onto the awaiting platform. She felt the light that illuminated the teleporter rise along her thighs and cling to her skin, holding her, keeping her place as if she needed to complete the journey into Gotham. Admittedly, she was concerned about Bruce’s inevitable reaction - there was an undeniable anticipation for shouting and insults and perhaps a small brawl she’d have to break up between the boys - but the silence from his end was ultimately much more unnerving.

When Kal stepped onto the platform, it began to rumble, ready to break them down and rebuild them in the Batcave. In fact, it was only a matter of three blinks, and Diana wasn’t in the JLA Headquarters any longer.

And almost instantly, Diana lifted her arms to thwart a metal weapon’s course after it was mysteriously thrown at her with deadly intentions.

“Diana!” Kal screamed, then lit up his eyes and fired his heat vision in the direction the attack had come from. The BatCave was nearly pitch black when they had entered and it made them an easy target for whomever it was that was lurking in the shadows. From behind her bracelets, her gaze fell to the ground and examined the object thrown at her…

A Batarang!?

“Wait!” Diana threw her arm out in front of Kal’s chest in order to stop him in his tracks. He obeyed her word of caution and drew the yellow sun’s energy back into his body. However, that only opened them to another attack and another pair of Batarangs flew at each of their chests. Someone was intending to kill them, and use Bruce’s weapons to do it!

That was the moment when Diana decided to give into her Amazonian strength. After worrying herself sick for a week about Bruce, taming her nerves in order to keep herself in line and respect his space, they arrive in his secret base just to be assaulted?

It was time to lord herself over whoever thought it was wise to challenge her.

She bent her knees ever so subtly, then pushed off of her heels and flew through the air at their assailant. Instead of Batman’s weaponry, their attacker switched to their own arsenal and sent a barrage of throwing knives her way but such primitive weapons were no match for someone of her calibur. She swatted them away like flies before coming to land against the cavern wall, tossing her body through the air so she could plant her feet against it instead of her fists.

As Diana spun her head around to take off again, Diana’s instinct caught onto the fist that was sailing right towards her jaw. She held up her palm to easily stall the punch, then clamped her hand around it with a vengeful grip.

“Ow, ow, ow!” Hissed her hidden enemy, just before she tossed them over her shoulder and stomped her Amazonian boot onto their chest, pinning them effortlessly to the ground. If not for their constant whining, she might have applied more pressure. “I give! I give!”

“Next time,” Kal’s tone was firm and unapproving as he stomped over to when she held their secret enemy down. “I would recommend you lead with something friendlier.”

The mysterious person’s face and voice were muffled by their mask, but their condescending chuckle was impossible to miss. “Riiight, because coming in here without any warning was so polite of you, too.”

Diana was prepared to lean over her leg and apply more pressure to her heel with the weight of her body. “When you’re friends with the person who owns the place and have worked here yourself, it’s not so impolite when you stop by.”

A colony of bats cried out as they scattered throughout the cave, just as the presumably male captive beneath her boot flailed wildly on the BatCave’s floor. It appeared as though his only hope was to remove the contraption on his head, revealing his face to the pitch black hideaway. “Wait, there are people who consider themselves friends with Bruce?”

“Yes.” Was Diana’s sharp reply.

“Okay then, even though I can only kinda trust you,” muttered the mystery man as he shoved her heel off of his chest. He scrambled to stand while Diana tried to regain her composure, unimpressed with herself for allowing herself to behave so rashly in the face of such a meager attack. No one had access to the BatCave except for those that Bruce trusted, so she knew that her behaviour was unacceptable. Taking a deep breath, she waited for their potential ally to wander over to the computer screen and turn it on, providing the cool cavern with some kind of warm light. Then, they came face to face with the individual that they should have assumed was their attacker. “Let’s get to know one another. I’ll go first, since I am the reigning member of the BatClan apparently. Hi, I’m Jason. Who the hell are you?”

((Whaaat!? Jason!? I actually didn’t intend for him to be in this chapter, but I think it makes it much more interesting than what I had planned. I hope you’re enjoying this story, and look forward to next Monday’s update! ~ Maiden))