The Wayne Legacy: Knightmare
By BetterInTexas
Chapter 34:
Dawes’ Residence
Kara fought back tears and kept a bright smile on her face as she sat next to Gertrude’s bed. On top of the stress of the past couple days, Rachel had contacted Diana and told her that her mom didn’t have much time and wanted to talk to both of them.
Now Gertrude lay in a hospital bed, set up by Hospice in her room, while Kara held one of her hands and Diana sat across from her, holding the other.
“You aren’t the skinny tomboy that used to run around covered in dirt anymore, are you, girl? My how you have grown up.” Gertrude said to Kara, a fond smile on her face.
Kara shrugged and squeezed her hand. “I still spend a lot of my time covered in dirt but mostly grease now.”
“You know, your mother was so proud of both of you girls, but Martha lit up around you like I had never seen her before. She was always a happy person, but it was different with you, Kara. You had not quite six years with her, but she cherished every day she had with you because she knew not to take a single day for granted, not with her sunshine. As happy as you made her, I think she lived in fear that you would be taken from her.”
Kara wiped a tear away with her free hand, thinking of her mother’s warm arms, her perfume and her laughter.
Gertrude lightly squeezed both hands she held, love flowing through touch. “Diana, you were always your daddy’s girl and mommy’s pride and joy, but Kara was Martha’s precious baby, the one she held the tightest. You three children gave her the best years of her life, but you fighting to live, Kara, gave her such hope and joy… a reason to treasure each and every day.”
“So, what you are really saying is daddy loved Diana more than me?” Kara joked, trying to deflect her inner sadness, causing Diana and Gertrude to laugh.
“I did not say that. Don’t put words in my mouth, girl.” Gertrude said lightly. “That man loved to dote on you. Big, tough Thomas Wayne was putty when he had you in his arms or on his shoulders. You were always Diana’s baby too. And Alfred… he adored you as a child, but the poor man was so British, he was clueless as to how to act around a little girl.”
“I had you too.” Kara added. “When Diana was at school or her and Mom were off and I had to stay in, you would always take time to play with me.”
Gertrude nodded. “We threw the best imaginary tea parties. We were the talk of Gotham high society. It took us a while to drink with our pinky fingers straight, but we eventually got the hang of it.”
“Yeah, we did.” Kara agreed.
“I’m so glad you are healed.” Gertrude told her, reaching up to caress her cheek. “I can tell by your eyes, by your presence, you no longer fear illness. You deserve it, Bunny. The little ray of sunshine that bounced around and brightened imposing Wayne Manor is finally free of fear.”
Kara didn’t deny it. There was no point. Diana had told Kara that Gertrude had always known she was different. Even if the older woman hadn’t put together Diana was responsible for her health breakthrough, she wouldn’t insult Gertrude’s intelligence now by denying the truth.
“Thank you. I’m not sure I’ll ever be free of fear, but it has gotten better. My best friend, Diggle, took a bullet for me two days ago. That kinda stuff is really scary.” Kara admitted.
“Yes, but don’t let that fear hold you back.” Gertrude spoke quietly until it turned into a cough. Diana held out a cup of water with a straw for her to take a sip after the cough had settled. The woman’s eyes expressed her thanks as she now addressed the older sister.
“Diana, that anger inside you, don’t let it win… you must fight it. When you think it is too heavy, focus on your sunshine here instead and let nothing else matter. Have children, be the wonderful mom you already are, keep your eyes on the important things. Promise me.”
Diana nodded. “I promise.”
“Goodbye, child.” She said, holding Diana’s eyes. “I’m going to see Martha and Thomas soon and I will tell them how wonderful you are.”
Tears filled Diana’s eyes and she held in a wail. She closed her eyes and Gertrude pulled her close. “Relax, child. Don’t be sad. I have had a wonderful life, have a wonderful child and been surrounded by loving people. It has been good. This isn’t the end. This is just me escaping this broken body and moving on to what is next.
“Now go. I want to talk to Kara alone. Don’t look back, always look forward. Don’t let hate and anger weigh you down, Diana. I love you.”
Diana kissed her on the cheek and walked out, fighting the urge to look back. Rachel had gone to the guest bedroom when Diana and Kara arrived so Diana had a seat on the living room sofa, letting the tears fall, knowing another piece of her past, another connection to her parents, was soon to be gone and there was nothing she could do.
Kara stayed in her spot, glad she could spend a bit of alone time with a woman who had meant so much to her and was a constant figure during her childhood.
“I read the papers. Not much else I have been able to do. I saw what happened to the doctor you worked with, what she did.” Gertrude said softly.
Kara nodded, looking away.
“Look at me, Bunny.” Gertrude instructed, making sure she had Kara’s full attention. “The woman’s nose isn’t the same as yours. You have a perfect chin, and she has a chin with a cleft. She doesn’t have dimples when she smiles in photos. You do not have the same eye color. Do you know why?”
Kara shrugged.
“Because you are not her.”
“I know…” Kara started, looking down.
“Kara, look at me. Look me in the eyes.”
Kara did so.
“You are not her.”
“I know. But I hired her, and she was working at Wayne Enterprises, and I hired a murderer…”
“Kara! Look at me.”
Kara stopped rambling and broke down meeting the old woman’s eyes.
Gertrude knew. She had probably known since the first photo of Emily Parlow had been splashed across the pages of the Gotham Gazette.
“You are not her. Say it.” Gertrude ordered.
“I’m not her.”
“Make me believe it.”
“I don’t know that I can. I’m so scared. We are alike in so many ways. How do I know…”
“I know.” Gertrude said emphatically, interrupting her. “You are Martha Wayne’s daughter. When she gave you her bone marrow, Alfred told me ninety percent of the blood in your tiny little body was hers. You are good like Martha, your true mother.”
“But I make so many bad things.” Kara said in a small voice. “I like it. What if I am crazy, just like her? Maybe I don’t realize it yet. How could I have never noticed how similar we were, our eyes, our hair? You did. I was so stupid.”
Gertrude wasn’t going to let her deflect or question herself. “Kara, say it.”
Kara met Gertrude’s eyes, tears running freely. “I’m not her.”
“I’m the daughter of Thomas and Martha Wayne. Say it.”
Kara took a deep breath and steadied her voice. “I am the daughter of Martha and Thomas Wayne. I’m not her… I won’t be her.”
“That’s my girl. Don’t you ever forget it. Never! I’ll be watching you. If you ever need someone to talk to, talk to me no matter where you are. I won’t be able to answer but I will listen, and you won’t be able to feel it, but I will be hugging you.
“You are a miracle, Kara Wayne. You are the miracle this world needs.” Gertrude’s eyes glistened with unshed tears as she reached up and caressed her cheek one last time. “I love you, Bunny.”
Kara hugged her gently, soaking the woman in tears.
“Shh. Don’t cry. I told your sister, I am just leaving this broken-down body. We will see each other again. Now I want you to stand up and walk out the door. Don’t look back. Never look back. Lean on those who love you and always look forward.”
“I love you.” Kara said, her voice cracking under the heavy emotion that was slowly overcoming her. “Thank you for making a scary childhood, less scary.”
“You are always welcome. Now go, don’t look back.”
Kara nodded and walked out, like Diana, resisting the urge to turn around. When she reached the living room, she and Diana hugged, and more tears fell.
Rachel walked out.
“Thank you for letting us see her.” Diana told her.
“She wanted to see you. I don’t make decisions for my mother.” Rachel said, her tone void of emotion. “She will want both of you at the funeral. When it happens, I will call Silver, she can give you the details. After that, we never see each other again.”
Diana nodded and turned to leave.
“Wait.” Rachel walked into her room and came back with a two-foot-long cardboard box. “She wanted you to have this, Kara.”
Kara opened the top and saw a pink bunny outfit inside. She clenched her jaw to stop herself from wailing and walked outside quickly. Diana followed and hugged her outside.
The two made their way to where Dig stood by the SUV. Once they entered, Tatsu and six other guards, who had been surrounding the house, returned to their SUVs and the caravan made its way toward Wayne Manor.
Diana and Kara hated funerals.
The first Diana had attended was their grandmother’s, but Kara stayed home because of bad weather. The second funeral was Sara Kane, their grandmother on Martha’s side of the family.
The third had been the double funeral of their parents, the first one Kara had ever attended. Diana had to force her grief to the back of her mind, focus on Kara, explain to her what was going on over and over, calm her when she yelled for the boxes with Mommy and Daddy not be put in the dark, stone building. She had to worry about Bruce who was practically catatonic. She had to stand at the funeral, try to hold her great grief at bay and not destroy the damn reporters who were flashing cameras in their faces, angering her and scaring Kara.
She avoided funerals as much as possible until weeks ago when she had to stand at the front of Harvey’s casket. It had been decided that Andrew would deliver a eulogy, but Harvey’s mother and father asked her to say a few words as well. She had to speak to hundreds who respected Harvey and talk about her friend while in the back of her mind, she knew if she hadn’t been so blind to recognize who and what Parlow was, Harvey would still be alive.
Very soon, she would be attending another funeral of someone she had loved. She had avoided Gertrude for years, certain the woman hated her for what she had done to Rachel. It hadn’t been true though and she wished she hadn’t missed out on that time.
The past was in the past though and couldn’t be changed. She was grateful they had the opportunity to speak before Gertrude died.
“Are you okay?” she asked her little sister.
Kara shook her head. “Too much loss. We’ve had so much loss. We haven’t had a win in a while. We need your wedding to happen without problems. We need a win, Diana, and you need to start helping. We are supposed to be doing it together, not me and Silver arranging and deciding everything.”
Diana smiled sadly, not realizing her hands-off approach had affected Kara that much. “I will. Starting tonight, I will ask Silver over, and we can go over detail after detail. I promise.”
Kara nodded, satisfied with that small win.
Gotham Memorial Cemetery
Bruce stood inside the Wayne Family Mausoleum in front of his father’s final resting place. He wasn’t sure why he came here. He was never a fan of this place. He hadn’t come since the anniversary of his parents’ death. He didn’t like talking to a stone wall upon which his parents’ names were carved and their caskets lay behind.
He knew Kara would come out here and go on and on, catching them up on her life as if they could answer back. Diana simply prayed.
Bruce did none of those things.
But now he was here, alone, drawn here by the need to ask his father so many questions he would never get answers to.
“I’ve learned some things recently,” he started, “things that have made me question if I really knew you at all. You told me once you regretted the lives you had to take in battle, and I believed you. But now… I wonder.”
Bruce sighed. “I learned a lot while I was away. I learned things that would blow your mind. Of course, considering we watched Diana grow up maybe it wouldn’t. I learned a bit about the nature of souls. I was once told by a shaman, that the souls of the dead are always listening, but they are strongest where they still have a physical link to the world… like a grave.
“I have no doubt you were with Kara when we were in Themyscira. There is no other explanation for how she survived that long. Kara is tough, and Eliza is brilliant, but that virus should have killed her in hours… yet, inexplicably, she held on. I choose to believe you gave her a reason to.”
Bruce ran his fingers over his father’s name carved into the marble.
“I was afraid in the Underworld. I wasn’t afraid of monsters I could face. I was afraid I would see you and Mom. I was afraid of what you would think of me.”
Bruce began pacing, his arms crossed, tightly holding himself.
“I just… I don’t understand. Did you think I was weak? Is that why you chose Diana? Was it when I fell into that hole? Those damn bats terrified me, yet they flew right past her, and she didn’t care. She jumped into the hole with those winged rodents and saved me. Did you find out she protected me from bullies on the schoolyard when I was in first grade too?”
Bruce took a deep breath. “Would you think I was weak now, because I couldn’t end Crane? Because I couldn’t do what Diana did? What would you say if we were face to face? That question haunts my dreams often.”
Bruce never heard Alfred walk into the Wayne Family Mausoleum, which was unusual, a testament to Alfred’s quiet footsteps and Bruce’s distracted mind.
“He never thought you were weak, Bruce. Thomas loved you with all his heart.” Alfred told him.
Bruce turned to Alfred and shook his head. “I never killed when I was with the League of Shadows. That’s what I tell myself, but it is a lie. I stole magical objects and gave them to a monster, knowing he would use them one day to possibly commit unspeakable acts, all so I could learn what I wanted to learn, become who I wanted to become.
“I slept with Talia, knowing what she was, what she did, and I did it voluntarily. I may have loved her, I don’t know, but when I got what I wanted, I shunned her as if she never mattered. The greatest love of my life is a criminal, a famous burglar, and despite my promise to stop crime, I would never turn Selina in. Never. I still love her.
“What does that say about me, Alfred? Do you really think Dad would be proud of a hypocrite? Diana has a code, one he taught her. I say I don’t approve, but that isn’t true. I hate what she did to Rachel but if Joe Chill was out there living the good life in middle America, I would be furious. I’m relieved she took out Crane.
“Dad was many things and had many sides I never knew about, but one thing I am certain of is he was never a hypocrite. He had a code and stuck to it, no matter what.”
Alfred walked up, wrapping his arms around the broken man, pulling him close and Bruce relaxed into him, taking solace in Alfred as he always had. Diana may run the household and Kara would always take comfort in her, but since their parents’ death, Bruce grew to see Alfred as a father figure and would look to him for guidance, more than Diana or Kara ever did.
“Maybe you don’t know everything about yourself.” Alfred told him gently. “Maybe you are a work in progress. You and Diana are so driven, I think both of you forget that you are so young. You’re not even thirty yet, Bruce. When your father was thirty, he was a doctor who rushed onto battlefields and killed enemies. He saved lives but he also took them. Do you think he was never conflicted?
“When he took over Wayne Enterprises, he had to suppress that part of him that only wanted to heal. It wasn’t easy. He began teaching Diana hard lessons as a child, lessons no youngster should have to think about, but knowing he had to start to prepare her to lead the family and company. Do you think that was easy for him?”
Bruce stepped out of the man’s arms. He shrugged. “I have no idea. He had so many sides, and I never really got the chance to know him.”
“I knew him well and let me tell you, Thomas Wayne was a very conflicted man. His lodestone, his guiding force when he was lost, was his family. Protect the family. That was one thing he was never conflicted about, and he built his life, his code, around that. Diana has followed his teachings and done the same. But you… you have to find your own code and it may take years. It is okay to be confused, Bruce.”
“Diana isn’t confused.” He pointed out.
“You aren’t Diana. You aren’t Kara and you aren’t your father. You are your own man, and you are strong in your own right. You fought monsters by Diana’s side to save Kara. She told me you saved her from being trapped in an illusion of her greatest fear. You have chosen a hard path for yourself, a mission in the grey where nothing is black and white.
“You won’t find your answer today but never doubt your father is proud of you, Bruce.” The sincerity and love in Alfred’s eyes eased the turmoil in his soul, even if just a little bit.
Alfred squeezed his shoulders in comfort, then motioned to the door. “Come on, let’s go home. Take a day and relax. You owe it to yourself. You are no good to anyone as run down as you are.”
Bruce nodded and admitted he was exhausted. He felt as if he could sleep for days. Yet sleep meant dreams and dreams often meant nightmares. Nightmares meant a different type of battle, one in which he fought his own mind.
But perhaps that was what he needed… to face his greatest enemy.
He needed to face himself.
Wayne Tower
Sam ended the call with an old friend from her previous job. It was good to hear from someone she once worked with who was happy for her success.
She had learned so much since she had been working with Diana. She was beginning to feel she was getting a handle on this job. She was respected here. She didn’t have to prove herself to the executives under her or across the world because Diana believed in her and that was enough.
Ruby had started school and was doing wonderfully. She had always been a bit of a loner, as most gifted children were but unlike school before, she came home excited, her love for science growing every day. Of course, being the daughter of the Vice President of Wayne Enterprises and having a huge birthday party at Wayne Manor was also very good for her social standing.
The students she went to school with at Gotham Prep were focused on academics. There were no cliques, according to Ruby, except among the topics. The robotics and engineering kids sat with each other, the kids with focus on biology congregated together and so forth. The school had a comprehensive admission criterion, and many were on scholarships. You didn’t go to Gotham Prep unless you were serious about school. No one had time for bullying.
In short, Sam had found heaven, the absolute best place she could raise her child. She was living her dream. She had seen projects that would save the environment, with no profit, approved. She had seen the best where they belonged, not because of office politics. She was learning how to manage every aspect of the world, even politics.
In ten minutes, she would learn her biggest lesson to date.
The President of the United States had called Wayne Enterprises this morning to speak to Diana Wayne. Cathy had told the man that Diana wasn’t available to speak until eleven a.m. and to call back then.
Diana Wayne had put the President on hold, making him bend to her schedule.
Sam could barely believe the world she had been brought into at times.
Five minutes to the appointed time, she walked into Diana’s office and had a seat.
“Kara isn’t coming?”
“I believe Kara and Babs are playing video games in Babs’ office. That’s what Babs true position here is… a highly paid playmate.” Diana chuckled. “The topic of today’s discussion with President Nathan Madder is the national security advisor. It was on his orders, against my expressed wishes that he had federal agents near Kara, one of whom was sprayed by Crane and took a shot at my little sister. I told Madder to remove General Swanwick from the position four days ago and it hasn’t been done. Since he didn’t take my wishes seriously, I must show him how serious I am.”
The phone rang outside and Cathy informed Diana it was the President.
Diana pressed the speaker phone button.
“Nathan, good morning. How are you?”
“Diana. I’m not doing well.” Came the reply.
“I’m sorry to hear that.” Diana told him, feigning concern and winking at a wide-eyed Sam.
The President continued, obviously wanting to get to business. “I would like to discuss some recent business transactions I understand you are soon to make.”
“And I would like to know why General Swanwick is still employed by the U.S. Government, when I expressed my wishes that he be removed from his post after his actions led to my sister being shot at and her bodyguard taking a bullet to protect her.” Diana shot back.
The President cleared his throat. “I understand your worries and am looking into this matter. I have called General Swanwick in and listened to his reasoning. I am having the Justice Department interview those who were part of the decision making…”
“Enough, Nathan. I told you I wanted him gone, and he isn’t.”
“You cannot dictate my staff to me, Diana. I am the President.”
“I see. So how can I help you with your questions about my business transactions, Mr. President?” Diana replied evenly.
“Why are you closing down two major factories in Arizona and moving them to Georgia?”
“I assume you are referring to our shoe factory and our cell phone factory?”
“Yes, two of the major facilities in Arizona that have been serving your company well for the last thirty years.”
Sam raised an eyebrow at Diana, not having heard about this. Diana wrote on a post-it note, passing it to Sam with a wink. “False rumor, planted by State Secretary of Commerce in Arizona. He owes me.”
Sam nearly laughed out loud but held a hand over her mouth.
“I’m sorry but how is it your concern what I do with my businesses? I don’t dictate your staff, I don’t believe you dictate where I open and close businesses.”
“Arizona…”
“Is your home state, I’m aware. I plan to move my factories to Georgia, a swing state you desperately need in the next election. Once the plants are established, I will endorse your opponent and let it be known in your home state that your staff was partially responsible for the attack on Kara Wayne’s life, and you failed to act. You will be the reason why the state lost two of its largest employers.” Diana informed him smugly. “If necessary, I will cut off oil pumping stations in Arizona and raise interest rates at all the banks I own in the state, then raise fuel prices there as well. I have the ear of the Phoenix and Scottsdale Police Officers Association, great supporters of my sister and have been ensured they will stand with us and endorse your opponent.
“I have always stayed out of presidential elections, mostly because presidents have too little power for me to concern myself over. But you have crossed a line. I will ensure you lose your home state, you will lose Georgia and law enforcement organizations across the nation as well as the NRA who will endorse whoever my sister endorses.
“In short, I’m kicking you out of the White House, Mr. President, and it will be a landslide. So, how are you feeling now?”
Neither Sam nor Diana heard anything from the other side of the line.
Sam thought for a moment perhaps the President had hung up when the man suddenly asked, “If I get rid of Swanwick today, will you reconsider your business decisions and perhaps your endorsements?”
Diana didn’t reply, instead, she made a funny face and stuck her tongue out at the phone, causing Sam to stifle a giggle.
“I’m not sure.” She eventually replied. “I like a President I can have an amiable relationship with, one who takes my suggestions on key personal in high places seriously. I don’t feel we have that relationship. It’s not a big concern for me. You see, Presidents only have four-year terms, but I am the Defense Department for the next twenty years and likely longer. I will be still relevant while you are having difficulty walking on stage for the poorly attended speech of a forgettable ex-president on a subject nobody gives a damn about.”
“I don’t think it is too late to have that sort of relationship where we are amiable.” The President told her. “Perhaps we could talk about it at Camp David. I understand you are quite the golf player. I’ve always found that a round or so can mend even the most ardent disagreements.”
Diana rolled her eyes, stating, “I’ve been to Camp David. It’s a dump and your course doesn’t compare to the one I have at Wayne Manor. I find that people doing what I want, when I say, can mend the most ardent disagreements. I will be watching your actions from this point forward and they may cause me to reconsider my actions if I find them favorable.
“Goodbye, Mr. President. Don’t ever call to ask about my business interests again. Groveling is beneath the dignity of the office even if it isn’t beneath yours.”
Diana ended the call and leaned back, her hands on her lap and a satisfied smile on her face. “The next time we need to threaten the President, you can handle it.”
“That was freaking amazing!” Sam said excitedly.
Before Diana could go over the finer points with her, Steve rushed in, a panicked look on his face.
“What’s wrong?” She asked, rising from her seat in her concern.
“Put the Tower, Executive Suites, the manor and school on radioactive lockdown.”
Diana raised an eyebrow. “Athena, do as he says! Steve?”
Before he could explain, Babs, Dig and Kara ran inside.
“Radiation signatures are off the charts at all our monitoring stations worldwide, our satellites are going nuts.” Babs said.
“Worldwide?” Diana asked. “Are we in danger already?”
“Not yet.” Kara told her. “The radiation, it isn’t nuclear.”
“Then what is it?”
Everyone looked at Kara.
“I don’t know.” The blonde genius replied. “I’ve never seen or theorized anything like it. It’s spreading in the atmosphere over the earth at a rapid rate. Meaning we may have a cloud of radiation over us in as little as twenty minutes.”
Diana handed Sam a com. “Go to sublevel two, take Vanessa and Sasha with you. Use the tunnel to enter the Suites and activate emergency protocols. We won’t have time to grab the children without exposing them to radiation but don’t worry. The school is safe, and Athena is implementing emergency protocols there. I need you to get everyone you can into the large sublevels of the Suites as an added precaution. Keep them calm.”
“What do I tell them?” Sam asked, keeping her cool despite the anxious feeling in the pit of her stomach.
“Tell them for once it isn’t our fault and nobody is trying to kill me… that I know of.” Kara corrected.
Sam walked out with Sasha and told Vanessa to follow her.
Diana then turned to Tatsu who looked panicky for the first time ever.
“Go home, get Violet and bring her to the Suites’ basement. You don’t have much time.” Diana ordered her.
Tatsu ran.
“Kara, Diana, you are being called on secure line 134. ” Athena alerted them. “It is the National Security Advisor. Black Book is being activated. ”
Kara’s eyes widened. Black Book was the name the Government used for the group of scientists who gathered a few years ago to develop protocols for various worst-case scenarios and would assemble if the worse ever happened and the brightest minds in the world were needed.
“Babs, I need you to work from your office, you’ll be safe there. Call Alex and tell her to get everyone at the Medical Tech building to the basement. It’s the only area covered from radiological attack. We don’t have time to evacuate the hospital but let the Chief of Staff know what is going on. Then get on our satellites and give me everything you can.” Kara instructed, showing a strength that was always there but she rarely showed.
Steve, Dig and Diana followed Kara to the elevator, and it dropped rapidly to sublevel five, a doomsday operations room developed for situations like these.
The entire wall was lined in monitors. Kara sat at a chair with a keyboard in front of her. A holographic display popped, showing the Earth with a red cloud growing over it.
The screens on the wall came to life but only a few of the expected faces were present.
Michael Holt, William Magnus, Silas Stone and Ryan Choi were on screens… so was General Swanwick, General Lane, and the head of the Air Force, General Simmons.
“Kara Wayne, location WTS5, secure and contained. Diana Wayne, Colonel Steve Trevor and John Diggle are also present. Area is secure.”
“Welcome, Dr. Wayne.” Swanwick greeted her. “Thank you all for your swift responses.”
Another face popped up on the screen, that of Ray Palmer. In seconds, Ted Kord was present in the highly secured group chat.
“Does anyone know where Dr. Stein is?” Kara asked. “He is our radiation man.”
No one answered.
“I suppose we will hope for the best.” General Lane finally said.
“Does anyone have an idea of what we are looking at?” Swanwick asked.
“Unknown radiation.” Palmer answered.
Kara connected to Bad Wolf and swung her towards the estimated point of origin then checked the readouts.
“Oh, my god. Somebody opened an interdimensional tear… I’m looking at the source now.” Her voice shook slightly as she stared at the data coming in from her prized satellite. “The readings I am getting are the same we went over in interdimensional travel simulation. Magnetism, gravity wells, fusions… there is a definite hole there.” Kara stated, then said, “I didn’t do it.”
A round of “Not it!” went across the screens.
“None of us did unless one of us in Kasnia.” Kara replied after pinpointing the tear’s location. “Who do we know in that backwoods country that would be stupid enough to do this and have the knowledge and equipment to try?” Kara asked.
Swanwick groaned and turned behind him to speak to someone. “Give me a present location on Lex Luthor. Find out if any of his corporate jets made a flight plan to Europe in the last two weeks and if LuthorCorp has had any major cargo shipments into that country.”
The scientists continued working so Diana took the lead.
“Swanwick! What does this have to do with Luthor?” she asked.
“He arrived at the Pentagon a few months ago, trying to sell his idea on interdimensional travel. I told him it had been discussed, discarded and I would be filing an injunction, preventing him from any attempts. I should have watched him more closely.” The general admitted.
“I’m beginning to believe you are out to destroy this country, General Swanwick.” Diana said heatedly.
Steve walked up to her and whispered softly that now wasn’t the time. She nodded and calmed herself.
“Kara, is the radiation deadly?” she asked her sister.
“I don’t know!” Kara exclaimed, obviously frustrated at the data readings. “I’ve never seen anything like it. Anybody got any answers?”
“It isn’t nuclear or any type of cold fusion. It doesn’t mimic the sun.” Holt determined.
“It is causing storms. They are developing all over Europe and over the U.S. and South America.” Silas informed the group. “The energy seems to be gathered up into atmospheric pockets.”
‘Is the tear still open?” General Simmons asked.
“Yes.” Kara answered. “I think I can close it, but it would involve a drone strike to the machinery powering it first.”
“Luthor hasn’t turned it off?” General Lane asked in disbelief.
“He can’t.” Holt reported, watching the origin point. “Whatever type of half ass reactor he used is being powered by the interdimensional energy and has taken on a life of its own.”
General Lane paused for a moment. “Swanwick, you are National Security Advisor for the present. What’s the call? Can I order a military strike on foreign soil?”
“Yes.” Swanwick answered immediately.
The scientists opened their monitors at their various locations around the nation, connecting to Kara’s signal since she offered them the use of Bad Wolf. They watched a drone launch from a bordering country and within ten minutes, bombs were dropped on the outpost in the middle of the wilderness where the base and reactor sat.
The explosion was massive, taking out trees for miles.
“Please tell me that area wasn’t populated.” Kara whispered, closing her eyes.
“Sparsely but we had no other choice.” Steve told her, placing a hand on her shoulder.
She shook her head, trying to get her thoughts in order. In a situation like this, it had been decided that the scientist with the most experience in the field would take the lead. Since Martin Stein wasn’t present, Kara and her knowledge of physics would be next.
The issue she had was she couldn’t focus on the entire problem when she needed to concentrate on closing the hole. “The generator is destroyed but the hole is still open just above that area in orbit. It appears to be stationary, but I need to figure out how to close it. I’ve got one shot to get it right and have to focus, so Silas, take the lead.”
Silas didn’t hesitate. Out of all of them, he was the best at seeing big pictures since he had such a wide range of knowledge. Since Kara was the top physicist, she was the only one who could chose to place someone else in command. It had always meant a lot to him that she trusted him in that way.
“Stone taking command. Ray, are you running any ground simulations over the storm pockets?” Silas asked.
“Yes. There are no greater radiation levels on the ground until lightning strikes. Massive amounts of unknown radiation in those areas then they are gone.” Ray reported.
“Lightning strikes?”
“That’s the only way I can describe them. No electrical phenomenon. It’s almost as if the storm is reaching down to the ground to release power in contained blasts.”
“It’s venting.” Holt realized.
“Magnus, make sure the reactor is dead.” Silas ordered. “Ryan, pull up simulations and run scenarios where we attack the cloud with our own lasers and sound waves. See if anything works. Kara, how are we coming on closing that hole?”
“I’ve got it. General Simmons,” Kara called out to the head of the Air Force. “I need the Archangels I sold you… all seven of them. In the spirit of openness and honesty, I am going to break them, but I will sell you replacements at the same price.”
“Do it.” Simmons gave her immediate authorization.
“Athena, give me Oracle.” Kara said.
“I’m here, Mechanic. What do you need?” Barbara’s voice came through clearly from her tech kingdom on the ninety-ninth floor.
“We are taking over the Archangels. We need to reverse polarity on the magnetic responses, set the lasers for the spot with the most radiation in the middle of that damn hole in the atmosphere then fire. Once they are in… we are going to send them into the hole, then slam them together and self-destruct while charging up again.”
“A giant EMP combining highly focused light waves.” Silas realized. “Brilliant, Kara. Guys, the kid is beating you as usual. How can we disperse the radiation on the atmosphere?”
“As long as that hole is open, we can’t.” Palmer said.
“Can’t isn’t in our dictionary.” Silas told him. “Ted, Michael, William, Choi, I’d even listen to you right now.”
Kara didn’t focus on the byplay. Her entire focus was on her satellites, the best space defense and attack machines ever made, rocketing from around the world toward the giant hole in space time.
“Faster.” She mumbled, clenching her fists anxiously.
“They are going as fast as they can which is faster than any manmade object to date.” Babs reminded her. “Five minutes.”
Kord spoke up. “I think I can disperse the atmospheric radiation. I have a new cloud seeding chemical, but it could take days to get it over the world. Maybe weeks.”
“Fall back plan.” Silas told him. “Keep looking for immediate. Humanity is under a cloud of mystery radiation that is bombarding the surface of the planet like a death laser. I’m sending x-rays from S.T.A.R. orbital monitoring antenna. They are going through with no reaction. Someone simulate low-level gamma radiation.”
“Hold on to your seats, boys.” Kara said. “I’m about to make a big boom. Too bad there is no sound in space. This would have been cool.”
Above the Earth, approaching the large interdimensional hole, seven white satellites flew in a collision course with the hole and themselves, firing highly powered focused lasers at the source of the highest radiation flow. The lasers together burned as hot as the surface of the sun and when Barbara collided them at the entrance and Kara hit the self-destruct codes, along with the collision, the bright, soundless blast could be seen over the entire Northern Hemisphere.
The Black Book scientists watched the monitors closely and then cheered when the hole closed.
“Outstanding, Kara.” Silas told her, a smile gracing his face for the first time.
“The radiation… it’s dispersing.” Ray’s voice cut in.
The others looked at the worldwide radiation storms and saw he was right. With the hole gone, the radiation was dispersing into space.
“Everyone who owns a satellite, or hundreds in Kara’s case, check the planet for residual energy.” Palmer told the group.
The group spent the rest of the evening and night searching, the only hot spots around the world were the areas the radiation storms had struck the ground. They were quickly dispersing but military units were being dispatched to those locations as quickly as possible.
Black Book disbanded at four thirty in the morning, an hour and a half from sunrise in Gotham City.
Rather than relaxing, Kara began checking on Wayne Properties and labs all over the world. What she saw distressed her. It appeared that one blast was in the area of Pamela Isley’s lab. She called but received no answer.
While the scientists of Black Book had been saving the world from being continuously bathed in interdimensional energy, the citizens of the world itself were not sure what to do. Unlike Wayne employees, they didn’t have protection.
In Peru, Pam had been walking with her security team in the Rainforest, something she enjoyed greatly to relax.
She was surprised by the red clouds of energy above her and stepped into a clearing to get a better look. She was hit by a blast from the sky so quickly, she didn’t have time to scream.
In Star City, Laurel Lance had gone outside, determined to run four blocks and find her friend, Tommy, at his work, hoping he could call his ex and find out what the hell was going on.
She was in the middle of the street when she realized the storm was rolling above her. She screamed when the red energy blast engulfed her, a scream that changed, rose in pitch, shattering windows and crumbling bricks around her. She wasn’t aware of what happened next, only remembered being picked up in Tommy’s arms as he got her off the street.
Dr. Martin Stein and his assistant, Ronnie Raymond, had been on the road to Gotham City to see Kara Wayne. Dr. Stein believed he had made a revolutionary breakthrough in solar fusion but was not sure who to trust. He trusted Kara, knew she would not betray him while also verifying his findings and steering him to the right people. Because of his distrust of many people, he had told no one of this trip.
When he pulled his car over, he and Ronnie had both gotten out, when a blast of energy hit both as well as their car, containing a briefcase with a working prototype of a device Stein called Firestorm .
Dr. Caitlin Snow was in her small lab in Central City when it was struck while she was working on experimental chemicals in cryogenics.
Radio DJ Leslie Willis had stood atop her radio station, watching the skies when a burst of energy struck the electrical panel and her, leaving her hovering between electric and human form.
All around the world, no area was without victims of the blasts. The mysterious energy altered and, in some cases, rewrote people’s DNA.
As the morning sun rose, the world was already reporting that an industrial accident had occurred overseas releasing a new type of radiation believed to be harmless and had been dispersed. It was reported that Lex Luthor had been performing an illegal experiment and was now the world’s most wanted criminal. LuthorCorp assets had been frozen.
What the world did not know, including those considered to be its brightest minds, was that they had entered a new age… a new era of the human race.
This was the dawn of the metahumans.
Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction 
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