The Chat...

“Luke I am your father…” Kara imitated Darth Vader from behind the gas mask.

“Hard to take you seriously as Dark lord of the Sith with that chest,” Barbara giggled.

For whatever reason, Bruce had called ahead and ordered Kara to put on a full hazard material version of her Batsuit. While the ‘bat-brats’ waited for Bruce’s return, they started goofing around like most young people do. Dick and Jason were playing catch by throwing sharpened batarangs at each other while Kara did impersonations for Barbara’s amusement. A whine came from the teleporter, and then Clark walked into the main area of the cave.

“So where is Bruce?” Clark asked as he looked around.

“Ahh…” Jason stammered as he loosed a batarang at Dick.

“Hay, watch where you are throwing them!” Dick called.

The batarang had gone wide and almost hit a high-pressure tank next to Dick. The sound of an engine caught everyone’s attention. Bruce had left in a hybrid electric SUV from the garage earlier, so everyone looked around at each other as they listened to the vehicle park here under the manor in the cave. Bruce walked in briskly and pointed at Clark.

“Clark go stand over by where Jason is, please don’t ask questions or debate me,” Bruce stated, “Kara make sure your fully sealed.”

“Shouldn’t we have suits too?” Barbara asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” Bruce said, “Helen and Karen will be here shortly, once Karen has her decon shower, we are going to have a talk…”

*

Alfred answered the door and smiled. Karen and Helen were dressed in matching evening dresses. Alfred however was wearing a suit with a full set of plastic aprons and gloves on.

“Ah Madame Helen and Madame Karen, right this way,” Alfred said, “Feeling a bit woozy Madame Karen? Weak, heart beat irregularities?”

“How?” Helen snapped.

“Master Bruce planned for the General Zod character or any number of rogue Kryptinians like those imprisoned in the Phantom Zone deciding to assassinate him,” Alfred said calmly, “You will find a fresh change of your choice on the bed once you take your showers. Just leave everything on the floor, they will be decontaminated, cleaned and returned to you tomorrow.”

*

“So why are you sitting next to a HVAC?” Clark asked for the fifth time.

“Because some how the son of a bitch managed to turn himself into Metallo,” Karan said as she and Helen exited the elevator.

Karan and Helen walked in wearing matching white blouses and jeans. Karan was clearly wearing a glowing pendant under her shirt.

“Don’t for one second think this solar pendant makes up for poisoning me,” Karan snapped.

“You were the one that tried to squeeze the life out of my neck,” Bruce reminded her, “Now I could be petty and let you die. But that pendant will ensure your complete recovery.”

“How do you feel knowing that your father is ready to kill you?” Helen snapped looking at Kara in the sealed Batsuit.

“It was my idea,” Clark looked like a schoolboy that got caught cheating, “Plixy messed with my head and almost got me to unleash all the Phantom Zone years ago, I might have told them that he was the one who could stop them…”

“This was your doing?” Helen asked.

“Bruce has play books for how to deal with each and everyone of us,” Dick said, “If Bruce goes rogue he even has plans for how to stop him.”

“How can we trust his plans?” Karan asked.

“Because he doesn’t know them. And he has given us the keys to his downfall,” Jason said.

“And what if Lex Luthor gets a hold or your plans to kill the Justice League?” Helen asked.

“No, it was Savage,” Dick said pointing a finger at Karen, “That’s why you twitched when Savage came up in that meeting, he got a hold of the plans and tried to use them against your Justice League.”

Karen and Helen tried to remain stoic and not betray anything, but it was clear that Dick was right.

“It was rather fun leaking the fake plans to Luthor and Talia,” Clark chuckled.

“Speak for yourself,” Barbara said, “I had to listen in on the bug. ‘Oh my beloved,’ ‘Embrace me as your destiny my true love…’ gag me with a spoon.”

“I had to keep a straight face the entire time,” Bruce rolled his eyes, “Now that we have that cleared up. Lets clear up a few more things…”

“Yeah, Woodrue was a really bad guy, and Barry’s idea of the body cameras was actually a good one,” Clark said as he pulled out the small device, “I never thought I would actually hear plants talk.”

“He still refuses to confess and the statements of the Parliament of Trees are vague,” Bruce folded his hands together, “So let’s hear the full story.”

“Doctor Jason Woodrue was known as Floritic man,” Karen started, “He got his start working on plant human hybridization and used the younger Doctor Pamela Isley as a test subject. The Aris 4 blast was partly caused by an parallel Earth’s attempt to stop a comet from killing everything, it scattered samples of a Dryd across the multiverse, Woodrue used the sample to improve his methodology and made himself able to access ‘the Green’ or the life force of all plants.”

“So that was his crime against Nature,” Clark said.

“And why he has to be held off world so he can’t reconnect and mess with them,” Bruce finished the thought.

“Ok, so you are the one that fried Woodrue’s first body?” Jason half asked, half accused.

“I had to provide a closure so Poison Ivy would never appear,” Karen confessed.

“Poison Ivy?” Kara asked.

“In our timeline,” Helen spoke up, “Pamela Isley develops full control over her chlorokinis and her mind control pheromones. She becomes and serial killer that hides behind delusions of being ‘Mother Earth’ and acting in the environment’s best interests. She will flee into a Boom-tube after a battle and be recruited by Darksied. She returns and enslaves a lot of people to use as cannon fodder in the work up to the full invasion by the Armies of Apocalypse.”

“Even members of the Justice League?” Barbara asked.

“Many,” Helen just looked down.

“So where is she now?” Clark asked.

“Wayne Bio-medical,” Bruce stated, “Lucius is confident that they should be able to at least suppress the pheromone glands.”

“So why do you two treat me like I am evil,” Jason asked, “Did the other me become the general for Darksied or something?”

“No, you end up a serial killer,” Helen said flatly.

“Am I like a cool one at least?” Jason asked.

“No,” Helen and Karan stated flatly in unison.

“Ok,” Dick said, “Who else should we be looking for?”

“What about Jervis Tetch?” Bruce asked.

“Don’t hire him,” Helen stated, “He will use his job with you to become a super criminal.”

“He has already been working for Wayne Bio-Medical for years now,” Bruce said, “Developing computer /nerve interfaces for prosthetics…”

“Well fuck,” Helen stated flatly.

“Why do you say that?” Clark asked.

“He is developing the reverse technology as well,” Karen stated, “In our time line he is called ‘The Mad Hatter,’ and he uses computers made into the head bands of hats to enslave people and turn them into his puppets. He uses them to enslave friends and family members to rob the people who trust them, to fight for him and even use women without consent.”

“So… Pink slip his ass?” Dick suggested.

“That will be justification for him to use the technology for criminal purposes in his mind,” Helen shook her head, “But the contrary is that if you leave him alone he will develop the technology anyways and be tempted to use it.”

“You are then stuck in a paradox,” Karen noted, “If you fire Tetch, you get a less technologically sophisticated Mad Hatter sooner, but if you don’t fire Tetch, you get a more technologically sophisticated Mad Hatter later.”

“Or we could kill him,” Jason mused.

“Jason NO!” everyone seemed to shouted at Jason.

“I don’t see a problem with that plan,” Alfred said, “Especially since it would mean I would never have to make my apple pie for Master Jason ever again.”

“Ok, the bastard has to live no mater what,” Jason folded his arms.

“Jason!” Clark snapped.

Everyone just ignored Jason. Bruce looked at Helen intently.

“What can you tell us about Azreal?” Barbara asked.

“Don’t ask him to put on the Batman mantle,” Helen said, “Trust me that won’t end well.”

“Jean-Paul as the Batman?” Kara asked.

“Does that mean one of these days, Bruce is going to…” Clark started.

“Well he survives the fight,” Karen said, “And yes, he got into a fight with someone at our weight class Kal. He did recover afterwards, but he needed to take a sabbatical.”

“Does that mean that Jean-Paul isn’t possessed?” Dick asked.

“No, but he was subject to some very sophisticated brainwashing as a child that created an alternate personality in him,” Helen shook her head, “It is possible to get throw to Jean-Paul even when he is in Azreal mode, but it is hard and Azreal is stubborn.”

“But he did join us,” Kara asked.

“Well, in my world Azreal joined the Bats until his death,” Helen clarified.

“What do you know about Intergang so far?” Karen asked clearly wanting to change the subject as she looked at her younger twin.

“They are a series of middlemen connecting various gangs, mobs and cartels together,” Clark stated.

“Dick?” Bruce prompted.

“Sure. Intergang is a communications and co-ordination network for low-level gangs run as a forward infiltration, reconnaissance and intelligence operation for Apocalypse. The primary figures running the show are Macarone and Sleaze,” Dick read off the mental notes.

“What about Sleeze?” Bruce asked.

“A living weapon psychic, messes with people’s heads,” Dick elaborated, “Then blackmails the person for profit.”

“What did Sleaze do to Clark in your world Karen?” Bruce asked directly.

Karen was about to protest but realized how pointless that would be.

“Right you can read the body langue of a flee and five hundred meters,” Kara started, “Kal and Barda went to look for missing women in a sewer system and ended up staring in a hard core porno for Sleaze until… others snuck up and knocked the servant of Darksied out.”

Clark’s face went red.

“Sounds about right, one city council woman denounced the gangs on a Friday morning, went to Vegas for the weekend with her family and on Monday night she was arrested for selling her ass on the street while her husband and son were costarring in a gay porn livestream,” Dick groaned, “And yes it was hardcore.”

“How…” Clark started to ask.

“You didn’t think Bruce let me skip a semester of College to go on a road trip just so I could spend time with the Alien Princess, did you?” Dick asked.

“So what else do you know about them?” Helen asked.

“Well for right now Macarone is the one in charge,” Dick said, “She has shown no superpowers so far. But she could walk into a Shrek’s, drop a hundred dollars and walk out as an invisible nameless faceless officer worker in the crowds of the city. A far cry from the rest of the warriors of Darksied.”

“What are they doing so far?” Helen asked.

“Well, so far they are providing financial services to help smaller groups with getting weapons to help them counter the Justice League,” Dick said, “But I am hearing rumors they are looking for some gangs to connect with some new suppliers. Possibly they are starting to import weapons from their homeworld to help destabilize our defenses?”

Both Helen and Karen nodded as they listened to Dicks notes from his investigation.

“We would need pictures to see if Macarone is one of the Female Furies we delt with before,” Helen stated, “What about Bruno Mannheim?”

“He is the primary contact in Metropolis,” Dick said, “I am sure you know him for his part in the Mannheim family Clark.”

“Yes,” Clark mused, “He is called either Ugly Mannheim or the banker.”

“He is one of the willing allies of Darksied,” Karen said.

“What about this new player, the Cluemaster?” Clark asked.

“Arthur Brown?” Helen said, “He is mostly annoying. His daughter is more interesting.”

“The next generation end up better than the last as a criminal mastermind in that family?” Barbara asked.

“She could go either way, and is a bit of a pain in the ass,” Helen stated, “But Stephanie could be an ally if she is as resentful towards her father this time as the last time.”

“What names should we be looking for?” Bruce asked.

“Be careful of a Jaina Hudson, or any woman calling herself the White Rabbit. Hugo Strange and Harley Quinzelle need to be watched. Doctor Langstrom, both the husband and wife. Margaret Pye is another one to be careful of,” Helen rattled off names.

Bruce was typing the names into the computer.

“Lazlo Valintine, Thomas Blake, Basil Karlo, Joe Blackfire, Arnold Wesker…” Karen continued.

“This might be hard to hear, but Thomas Elliot, Peyton Riley, and Harvey Dent,” Helen added.

“That is a pretty serious accusation,” Barbara spoke up, “The DA?”

“Doctor Elliot?” Alfred asked.

“You know Dent has a dark side…” Helen caught herself, “He was attacked by the mob and it ruined half his face, that unhinged his mind and he became one of the monsters that you worked with to stop…”

“In your timeline,” Bruce spoke up, “Thomas Elliot was the one responsible for his father’s death, wasn’t he?”

“Yes, but that wasn’t enough for him,” Helen stated.

“Isn’t he the one dating the Mob daughter?” Jason asked.

“Peyton Riley,” Bruce confirmed.

“If Thomas’ mother dies, you have the two prime suspects now,” Helen stated.

“Ok,” Dick said, “What else should we watch out for?”

“Even we never got to the full depths of the Court of Owls,” Helen confessed, “They have many assassins and most of the families of Gotham are members.”

“Kal, I will send you a list of people the Justice League should have on a watch list,” Karen said, “Both as recruits and trouble makers.”

“Very well,” Clark said, “If you see something that needs to be delt with, please let all of use know before you act. I am less concerned about territorialism, but clarity. We don’t want a false accusation of murder hanging around.”

“Can I ask something?” Kara asked, “What about Selina’s girls? Holly, Maven, and Kit?”

Helen and Karen looked back and forth between each other and the other people in the cave.

“We didn’t encounter them,” Helen admitted.

“Interesting,” Bruce noted coldly.

*

Kara sat on top of the cathedral, she watched the night. She thought about the names that Helen and Karen mentioned. There were two more names that they gave to Clark that stuck with her. “Bizzaro” and “Superboy.” Kara thought again back to the night with Mercy Graves pregnant. Was that Bizzaro? Was that Superboy? Where were they now? Kara wondered.

“Hay there Kitten,” Selina’s voice came from behind Kara.

Kara turned around and looked at Selina.

“How are you?” Kara asked, “Shouldn’t you be at home?”

“Out for a quick meeting,” Selina said, “Will be back after this to tuck Kit in for the night.”

“What do you think of Helen?” Kara asked.

“I don’t know,” Selina said, “She tries to stay as distant from me as possible. It is like she is ashamed of something and doesn’t want me to know…”

“What would you tell them?” Kara asked.

“I don’t know,” Selina said as she looked up, “No, I know… I might not be her birthmother, but she is my kid, she has nothing to be ashamed of. I am more than willing to give her the chance.”

Kara saw the movement over the shoulder. It was Helen in her Huntress outfit, she had heard, and Selina knew she was in ear shot.

“I have another kitten to tuck in,” Selina put a hand on Kara’s shoulder, “Go and get something warm in your system.”