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Bruce and Clark had been seeing each other for nearly a year.
Approximately nine months, seventeen days and four hours, but his usual hyper fixation on exactness would come across as ‘crazy white girl behavior’ according to his kids, so the Dark Knight restrained himself from phrasing it in such a manner.
That’s when the first idol was found.
Alfred had been following his usual schedule, Tuesday was his day to tend to the garden for lack of much going on as apposed to say, a Monday or weekends, what with all the children in the household and the head of the family being in charge of one of the top largest companies in the world the week could get hectic even without the crime fighting part of their lives.
It was how the retired Royal Marine relaxed. Just him and the flowers his dear friend Martha Wayne had entrusted him to carry for after her untimely passing. He had ways of honoring Thomas’ memory as well, but this was his connection to the lady of the manor.
So imagine his surprise when he pushed aside some branches to inspect for root damage, after a particularly nasty gopher had somehow invaded the property (Ace had gotten the destructive little rodent and had been rewarded with a steak for dinner), only to find an odd man-made object nestled cozily under the rose bush.
It was a small idol, about four inches in height, of a pretty woman with short curly hair, wearing a fitted bodice and flowing skirt with a half slit up the side and one shapely leg exposed. Her elegant hands were folded demurely on her chest with her head held high and a serene smile on her face.
A lovely piece of art, but unremarkable aside from its odd placement. In all the years of service and friendship Alfred had given the Wayne family surely he would have noticed this item, or Martha would have mentioned it to him, had it been there before this morning.
He did the only thing he could do, he brought the small totem to the Cave and began running every test he could think of on it and checked the security footage in the hopes of catching whoever had left it.
By the time Bruce was home from Wayne Enterprises and Damian and Tim from school, Alfred had more questions than answers for them but he had surmised that the icon was exactly what it appeared to be, a harmless piece of art. It was made of common Rose Quartz, easily acquired by anyone with a mind to buy some, and matched no art in the world wide database the Bat Clan had amassed over the years.
The mystery was unnerving. Though no harm has been done, the fact remained someone had breached their home security, even outwitting Ace’s senses as the dog loved spending time in the garden with Alfred.
“An obsessed fan of ‘Brucie’ maybe?” Tim had pondered aloud. “Or some cult that thinks they’re casting a spell on us, but ether did it wrong or have no actual mystical abilities?”
“Possible, but unlikely.” Bruce frowned thoughtfully, rubbing his chin as he watched the security footage of the little statue suddenly ’blinking’ into existence under the bush, with only a small breeze to herald its arrival.
“If this is one of the Flash’s pulling a prank, I insist we install tripwires.” Damian scowled “If for no other reason than getting to watch them fall flat on their faces in the playback.”
“No, we would’ve seen a smear of red or yellow had it been one of them. The faint trace of color looks more blue with a little red.” Tim squinted more out concentration than visual need as he played back the recording one frame at a time.
“Perhaps a gift from Mr. Kent?” Alfred visibly relaxed a little at the thought. “Though I cannot for the life of me comprehend why he would leave it there of all places.”
“I’ll ask him.” Bruce picked up the image and went upstairs to call his boyfriend.
****************************************
Roughly twenty minutes later Superman was standing in Bruce Wayne’s private study, turning the trinket over in his hands, using both his x-ray and normal vision to exam in it. He eventually handed back the item, just as baffled as his long time friend and recently acquired lover. “I certainly didn’t leave it for you, if I had a gift for you I’d give it to you directly, not hide it like a strange Easter Egg hunt. And I doubt Kara did, why would she? She’s only in charge of our family’s spiritual well being and since we’re not married yet, you’re technically outside of her responsibilities perimeters. Besides the fact that she left to visit friends on Rigel Nine a few hours ago.”
“She still would have had plenty of time, the statuette appeared roughly after six am this morning.” Bruce insisted.
Against his professional standards, he was hoping it had been ether his boyfriend or his cousin, despite what the famous Sir Arthur Conan Doyle once wrote about the perils of trying to force whatever little evidence you have into fitting your chosen narrative, it would be a much more acceptable situation if that were to be the case.
Superman shrugged. “I’m sorry Bruce but I don’t know what else to tell you. It’s exactly what it looks like, but why anyone would leave an idol of Lorra, Kryptonian goddess of love and beauty, in your care is beyond me.”
“An alien Aphrodite is she?” The ‘Prince of Gotham’ allowed himself a quiet chuckle. “It could still be Kara. Maybe it’s her way of encouraging us or showing her support of our being together?“
“I doubt it. My cousin isn’t the sentimental type and far more straightforward than that. If she decides to make her opinion on our having gotten together known, she’s more liable to give you our culture’s version of the Shovel Talk.” Clark laughed. “Well, at least the placement makes sense regardless of who put it there. Alfred puts a lot of love into keeping your family’s garden beautiful.”
Clark raised an eyebrow and smiled mischievously. “Maybe one of my fellow Kryptonians from Kandor has a crush on him. He is the most eligible bachelor in Gotham now that you’re officially off the market.”
Bruce smirked, giving the big Boyscout a look. Secretly he was charmed by the idea of someone attempting to court his beloved surrogate father. The dear man had been alone ever since his Maggie had suddenly been taken from him by a blood clot two years prior. The elder simply just didn’t have the heart to try to get back into the swing of the dating scene for a third time in his life, but perhaps if someone else took the initiative and approached him, Bruce could hope.
The people of the recently un-bottled and restored city of Kandor had integrated into Earth’s various societies slowly, being careful to not loose their culture as Kryptonians, but at the same time many of them were open to taking friends and lovers from amongst the Human race.
“Out of all the theories, leave it to you to come up with a pleasant one.” He teased, then became serious again. “Would you mind warning Alfred, and maybe giving him a heads up on what to expect if it turns out you’re right?”
“And how to react, whether he’s interested or not, to avoid an intercultural incident, sure thing Love.” Clark agreed. As an investigative journalist, he had done his fair share of overseas interviews, he knew all too well how a war could start over something as dumb as using the wrong fork during a meal.
*****************************************
The second occurrence was more curious than unsettling, both in part due to the first happenstance taking away the shock factor and the location of it being more of a semi-public place, though still technically within the realm of Batman’s territory.
Bruce decided his project could wait and took the image straight to Clark, who was enjoying the view of Earth from the JLA’s satellite’s observatory.
“Another one? Alfred’s secret admirer stuck again eh?” He smiled but it faded as his partner shook his head.
“It appears your theory was wrong. I found this one in my personal laboratory here at the Watchtower.” The Bat handed over the statue. It was roughly the same size as the first one and appeared to be made of granite. It was the image of a man wavy short hair and an Athletic build, wearing briefs like one might see a professional wrestler sporting but nothing else, and sitting in the same pose as Auguste Rodin’s ‘The Thinker’.
“That makes sense. This is Telle, god of wisdom, the sciences and the general pursuit of knowledge.” Clark murmured as he inspected it from all angles.
Batman sighed in relief. “At least it being here in one of the JLA’s two headquarters shortens our list of candidates to you and your family. I believe you when you say this isn’t you messing with me, so that leaves Kara, Conner, John, and…”
“Uh,” Superman rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and admitted “I gave a group of delegates from Kandor and their families a tour yesterday. It was about thirty individuals including spouses and children, with a wide range of politicians and the heads of the Warriors, Science and Workers Guilds. The Guilds hold you in high regard and specifically requested to see your lab. I’m sorry I didn’t call you for permission, I assumed you wouldn’t mind.”
Under the cowl Bruce raised an eyebrow. In a tone that said he was swiftly losing patience with the situation, he asked “I have an Extra terrestrial fan club?” He held up a hand and shook his head to stop his lover from even trying to explain it away. “Never mind that, forget it. Just how many deities do you Kryptonians have in your pantheon?”
“Roughly a baker’s dozen, depending on who you ask. Many have converted to only worshipping Rao, our chief god, and regard the others as modern Earthlings do the Olympians. Please don’t tell Diana I put it that way.” He gave a slightly nervous chuckle as he handed him back the statuette, and almost snatched it back when he realized Bruce looked like he wanted to smash it on the satellite’s titanium steel floor.
“So what you’re saying is, this could go on for quite a while still.” The Gothamite growled. “And my family has thirty possible stalkers?”
Clark spread his arms innocently “If it’s any comfort, I don’t think whoever is doing this means any harm. The association of each deity to a place within the requirements of their domain suggests the person or persons responsible are trying to protect and inspire you.”
“All the potential good intentions in the universe do not change the fact that someone has broken into, not only the JLA satellite, but also my home. Where my children live Clark!” He gripped the idol of Telle like it was a rabid animal he was trying to throttle and something in Clark, something instinctively Kryptonian, flinched.
The Kansas raised alien sent up a quick prayer, asking forgiveness, patience and understanding of the lesser deity, and placed his hands on his lover’s shoulders. “Bruce, I get it, but please Love, breathe.”
After a moment of glaring a proverbial hole in his boyfriend, Bruce unclenched his jaw and let out a loud sigh. To his credit, he didn’t fight it when Clark hugged him. “It’s just so… I hate feeling so exposed.”
“I know.” Superman kissed Batman’s temple. “We’ll figure this out. I promise.”
***************************************
The third incident doubled the invasion of privacy and the amount of stress upon Bruce’s heart.
The morning had started like any other. He strutted into Wayne Enterprises in full on Brucie mode, Starbucks for everyone and hanging around the water cooler with the resident gossips.
Secretly the heir to the Wayne legacy was doing recon to gauge if any of his employees were being abused by their superiors or if there was more he could be doing to improve the quality of their lives. It was why the benefits package now included pet hotels for when employees used their vacation time away from home, and began including elderly relatives such as the parents of adult children, in the insurance coverage.
Eventually though, Bruce had to go to his office and actually do his job as C.E.O. He said his goodbyes, shook some hands and kissed a few old ladies on the forehead, then retreated behind the thick, sound proof walls of his corporate base.
What was sitting on his desk made his blood first run cold with dread, then hot with anger. He quickly closed and locked the door, sat down his coffee on a stand and stomped over to the latest Kryptonian deity to have invaded his personal space.
It was made of a pale, opalescent material, more than likely moonstone, and of a woman with long curly hair, wearing what Bruce recognized as a traditional old fashioned Kryptonian wedding gown.
Her arms were crossed over her ample breast like one would see in the depiction of ancient Egyptian Pharaohs. In one elegant hand she held a carpenter’s hammer, in the other a scale a business owner might use to calculate payment for goods and services in olden times.
She stood barefooted upon a crescent moon and had a matronly figure, quite the refreshing deviation from the modern depiction of supermodel slenderness.
Had the situation been different, Bruce would have found this and its predecessors intriguing and a welcomed avenue for learning more about his lover’s culture. Even on a personal level, he found value in the craftsmanship and beauty of them as art pieces.
But the situation was not different, it remained entirely the same, someone was invading his personal life and endangering everything he lived for. If he and Clark didn’t solve this mystery soon, it would end with the Dark Knight either; best case scenario, developing an ulcer, or worst case, breaking his time honored ‘no killing’ code. Probably not the later, but the temptation was growing stronger.
Taking a few heartbeats to center himself, the heir of the Wayne empire decided to shove the statue into his shoulder bag and head down to R & D.
He needed to do something productive until his partner got off work, he would not interrupt Clark’s life anymore than necessary, he had a reputation to uphold as a dependable journalist and a need to make a living. The alien would zip over in literal seconds to aide in anyway he could, but what would be the point?
Since the incident would probably go as the prior ones did, with no evidence towards intent or the perpetrator(s) identities being derived, it could wait.
Truly though, Martha Wayne’s son simply wanted to, illogically and uncharacteristically, put off the moment of disappointment. He and the boys would have to begin their own investigation at this point. He had tried to put it off, so as to avoid an intercultural incident, but this could be allowed to go on no longer and Clark and Lois’ investigation had hit the proverbial wall.
Bruce made his way down to R & D as swiftly as discretion would allow. He looked forward to seeing if his dear friend, Lucius Fox, had made any breakthroughs with a new drone design he and Timothy had been working on. It would provide a perfect distraction from his stress.
That is, if the CEO hadn’t been greeted by the brilliant elder turning to face him with an odd idol in his strong yet wrinkled hands.
“Ah, Mr. Wayne. Good to see you. I was just about to bring this to you, did you leave it down here? Because I certainly didn’t and… are you alright Mr. Wayne? You’ve gone pale as a sheet.” Lucius gently squeezed the younger man’s bicep to regain his attention, Bruce had been staring at the statuette.
Sensing a fog of deep unease cloak this encounter, Mr. Fox endeavored to comfort the only son of his departed friend and employer Thomas Wayne. He smiled and tried a lighthearted shrug. “Ugly little fellow isn’t he. Looks like an old B movie monster. Got to envy him I suppose, think of how much more work we could get done with four arms instead of two.”
Bruce automatically accepted the idol as it was handed to him. It was made of a beautiful green stone, malachite if he had to guess, but other than that the piece was downright grotesque. Its torso was far too long, with spindly legs and the aforementioned slender arms, one clutching an elegant staff, and the other three each had some kind of small item in them. They looked to be a cross between a sculpture’s tools and a carpenter’s.
The creature’s head was elongated like the common description of a ‘Grey’ with a hyperextended jaw full of sharp fangs. There was barely any nose to speak of, no hair and three eyes arranged asymmetrically on the front of its face. There pose it was striking could be interpreted as ether a dance or some kind of martial arts technique.
Of all the holy images that had been left, this one had the first threatening air about it. Perhaps the Wayne family ‘admirer’ had lost patience with them for some reason and their adoration had shifted into hostility.
And it had been left in R & D, the most heavily defended part of Wayne Enterprises’ home base, second in security only to the Cave itself. The domain of Lucius Fox, one of Bruce’s few connections to his father left to him and a treasured friend for his own merits.
“Lucius,” Bruce swallowed and took a slow deep breath, “I can’t explain right now, maybe I’ll never be able to, but I…”
“Sorry to interrupt you Mr. Wayne, but you know how it gets when you’re older, if I don’t ask you for all my backed up vacation time, to take my family on that trip to the tropics I’ve been promising my wife for decades now, I’m liable to forget again. My apologies if my timing is poor, I hope this isn’t a bad time for my family and I to be so very far away from Gotham.”
Ever as clever as his namesake, the sly old fox gave his charge a knowing look.
They had always played this cat and mouse game (or bat and fox as it were) of never putting to words just how much Lucius had figured out about Bruce’s double life. Plausible deniability was a glorious gift they shared.
Thomas’ heir gave his mentor a grateful smile. “Of course old friend, take as long as you like. I’ll be in touch if anything new develops here, that I think you should be aware of.”
The inventor nodded “Very well Mr. Wayne, than you, and good luck my boy.” He gave the young man’s shoulder a fatherly squeeze and then left to go home.
Bruce immediately headed to his Mercedes Benz and drove straight to the Daily Planet main building in Metropolis as fast as the law and traffic lights would allow.
****************************************
Lois gave a start a Bruce Wayne dropped a suspiciously heavy shoulder bag onto her partner’s desk. The normally devil-may-care playboy looked agitated.
“Hey Lo, you know where our man is?” He leaned over and kissed her forehead, brushing her brown hair away from her eyes. He quickly whispered “Code S.” into her ear before flopping down in Clark’s wheelie chair, looking for all the world like a frat boy in a perfectly tailored suit.
‘Code S’ was what they called it when Clark was needed for Meta Human, super criminal or JLA business. On the other side of things, she and Clark would say to each other ‘Code B’ if they needed Batman.
“He’s filling in Perry on the story we just closed. You caught me proofreading our joint article. He should be out any second now.” She explained as she saved her work and closed the document so she could give the billionaire her full attention.
“That trafficking ring kidnapping girls out of Hokkaido?” He pretended to guess. They both knew he was completely appraised of the situation, having hooked them up with his old connections in Japan’s government and law enforcement in the afflicted area, to help expedite the entire situation.
She nodded, playing along for the sake of lookieloos like Jimmy and Kat, “That’s the one.” She glanced at the bag pointedly and he silently answered her with a fleeting grimace. She made an expression she hoped conveyed her sympathy. The famous spitfire of a woman hated not being able to help her friend more than she had already tried.
“Bruce, did we have a lunch date and I forgot?” Clark’s expression had gone from radiantly pleased to suddenly fearful in less than a heartbeat, causing his two favorite people to snort in amusement.
Th big farm boy definitely had a type when it came to both lovers and friends.
“If I were a cruel man I’d let you think so. But no, I was in the area and thought I’d swing by to see if I could tempt my two favorite crusaders for Justice to let me treat them. Well let Lois pick where we go.” The ‘Prince of Gotham’ smirked.
She immediately pounced on the opportunity. “The Jewish delicatessen on the corner of Shuster and Siegel. I’m addicted to that place but can’t afford it half as often as I’d like to go there.”
“Want me to buy the place for your next birthday?” Bruce teased, only half joking.
“Don’t you dare. I’ll knee you right in the money belt Daddy Warbucks.” Lois could give back as good as she got.
“Ouch.” Laughed her opponent “At least that’s the closest I’ll ever get to hearing you calling me ‘Daddy’.”
Clark’s head turned back and forth, like he was trying to follow a tennis match, as they bantered. He ran his fingers through his already disheveled curls and smiled. “Well if Bruce is paying and Lois is choosing, then I guess that means I’m driving. Let’s go.”
*************************************
“Two this time.” Lois sighed in frustration and took an angry bite of her potato Knysz. The trio were sitting in a quiet corner of the Metropolis Grandview Park, eating their food picnic style.
Bruce had ordered for them all in perfect Yiddish and charmed the elderly couple who owned the place with his knowledge of their culture. When they inquired as to how the famous Bruce Wayne knew so much about their people, he proudly admitted “My father was raised Catholic and my mother Jewish. My first three languages were English, Latin and Yiddish.”
“I’m learning new things about you all the time.” Clark had grinned.
Now they lounged about on the grass, Clark with his back to a huge ancient oak tree, both men having taken off their dress jackets and ties. All three of them had kicked off their shoes and discarded them into a childlike pile to their left. The off duty guardian of Gotham lay with his head on Clark’s shoulder and his long legs draped across Lois’ lap as she sat cross legged next to them.
“The female is Yuda, goddess of hard work, marriage and the moon. Mainly worshipped by the Laborers Guild now, the Religious Guild, as I’ve told you both before, refuses to acknowledge any deity except Rao but they still allow Yuda to be mentioned in the traditional wedding vows.” Clark explained.
“How generous of them.” Lois’ rolled her eyes. “And the one who looks like a Ray Harryhausen creation?”
“That’s Vohc. Son of Rao himself.”
“Must take after his mother then, the statue of Rao you have in the Fortress looks nothing like him.” Bruce quipped. He was in vaguely higher spirits now, good food and good company and a text from Lucius saying he and his family had arrived safely in Nasou, had done leaps and bounds for his mood.
“Be nice you two.” Clark half heartedly scolded “Vohc’s is a very tragic story, but that’s not important right now. What is important is that he is the god charged with the creation of wondrous things. He’s an inventor and an artist.”
“At least where these damn things are being left still makes sense.” Lois murmured and took a drag of her chocolate milk.
“People don’t get married in my office sweetheart.” The Gothamite gave her an amused look.
“No, but it’s where you do your work for your family’s business. Secondary function as the goddess of labor, please pay attention.” The Pulitzer Prize winner playfully shot back.
“Ah. I stand corrected then, so to speak.” He stretched and rubbed her elbow with his foot, almost causing her to drop her last Kynsz.
“Watch it Richie Rich, I take my take-out seriously.” She laughed.
“It’s a relief to hear this Vohc character isn’t some kind of harbinger of a blood fued or something.” Bruce scowled at the statue siting in front of them like an ugly centerpiece at a banquet. “I might be letting myself interpret him through an Earthly lens but you got to admit, he’d look pissed off in any culture.”
Clark shrugged. “Creation can sometimes be a violent process.”
“Like Volcanoes forming islands.” Lois chimed in.
“Exactly. But to be completely fair, it might also have to do with his love/hate relationship with his sister, Flamebird, goddess of destruction. It was supposed to be a symbiotic relationship but, well let’s just say she takes her duty a bit too seriously.”
“As the only one of us with a sister, I can confirm they’re hurricanes that run on estrogen and sugar.” Lois quipped.
“You expect us to believe sweet little Lucy is evil?” Clark shot his partner a skeptical look.
“You didn’t grow up with her, Smallville.” The petite brunette started gathering up their trash, electing a mild groan of protest from Bruce as he had to move his legs to let her up to do so. When she returned from her trip to the trash can a short distance away, she kissed Bruce’s temple and flipped down on the other side of Clark to stretch out.
“Do you think you should start circling the wagons, so to speak?” She gently inquired. “Maybe send the kids and Alfred on a trip to visit his brother Wilfred in India? Or maybe get Damian’s mother to help.”
The Dark Knight let out a long frustrated sigh that was more than half growl but Lois didn’t take offense. She knew it wasn’t directed at her.
“Trust me, I’ve been wrestling with that very option for a while now. Only four things keep me from doing just that.” He grumbled, crossing his arms and gazing up into the dappled light peaking through the greenery over their heads.
“And what are those four things?” Clark asked, his lips ghosting over Bruce’s hair as he spoke.
“It may still be Kara.” He reluctantly brought it back up much to his boyfriend’s chagrin.
“Bruce, we’ve been through this.” His tone was warning. “I’d ask her to tell you herself to get you off this horse you’ve been ridding to death, but she’s been busy lately. She keeps having to run errands all over the universe and I can’t get her to sit still long enough to tell me what she’s doing let alone come assuage your concerns.”
“Ok, allow me to rephrase, I’m hoping it’s Kara. Those ‘errands’ you mentioned might be her commissioning these damn nicknacks I keep receiving.” He rolled his ice blue eyes.
“Thank you for being more open minded.” Clark smirked. “But I still think you’re wrong for once. Why would Kara go off-world when she could hire someone from the Artist Guild in Kandor? Which I checked by the way. You’re not the only one with investigating skills among us, thank you very much. The maker’s mark is in written in Kryptonian even as the materials are of Earthly origin. Unfortunately there’s a confidentiality law my people take very seriously, it’s to protect individuals who choose to continue worshipping all the old gods. This way it’s harder for hate groups to find victims. If a client doesn’t wish for anyone to know they commissioned a piece of a religious nature, I can’t demand the artist forgo that law unless I have evidence their client has committed a crime.”
Lois sat up and gave him an incredulous look. “Breaking and entering and terrifying an entire family wasn’t considered a crime on old Krypton?”
“We have no proof aside from the idols existence, and even then, who’s to say Bruce or any other member of his family didn’t buy these and put them there?”
“Why the Hell would I do such a thing? To what end?” Bruce huffed, glad to point out the holes in Clark’s defense of his cousin. Why was he being so stubborn about this? All Bruce wanted was to ask her! To gain a little peace of mind for Christ sake. Would it really be so hard to grab the kid by her cape and make her sit still for a ten second conversation? That was all he was asking for.
Clark scowled at him and then turned to boop Lois on the nose. “Hey, don’t you two get huffy with me, ok? I’m just saying what any judge, Earthling or Kryptonian, would say.”
“You know what I hate most about this?” growled the Bat “It’s the fact that you’re right. For now!” He whirled around to punctuate his statement by poking his man in the chest, hard.
The Kansas raised alien smiled, looking very smug. “Don’t feel bad. Not even the world's greatest detective can get it right all of the time.”
“Whatever. Asshole.” The Bat sulked and flopped back down to lay his head on his lover’s lap.
Lois ran her fingers through his hair until he calmed back down and he caught her hand and kissed it in gratitude, holding it over his heart. “What’s the other three reasons?” She asked, suddenly remembering.
Bruce counted them off on his long fingers as he recited them. “Firstly, I can’t send my family running into hiding every time there’s a crisis, that defeats the purpose of our mission. Secondly, I want them close so I can protect them more effectively, and lastly,” he smirked “bold of you both to assume my stubborn children and equally stubborn surrogate father would listen to me and actually go.”
“He’s got us there Clark.” Lois conceded.
They sat quietly for a while longer, allowing the warm summer breeze and their companionship to ease the tension of the rather intense turn the conversation had taken. Eventually Lois and Clark had to return to work, reluctantly getting up and putting themselves back together like adults must.
“If you need anything, please…” Clark pleaded.
“I have you both on speed dial, I promise.” He hugged them goodbye, stealing a few more chaste kisses until his bosom friends were both giggling at his antics and gently shoving him in the direction of his car.
****************************************
The fifth idol was found in the Cave by Damian. Dick had heard about the situation and stopped by to see if there was anything a fresh set of eyes might be able to accomplish.
So he was there to witness all the color drain from his mentor’s face, as they descended the stairs that lead from the library down into the Cave proper, only to be greeted by the sight of Bruce’s twelve year old staring quizzically at an odd figurine in his adolescent hands.
“It’s happened again Baba.” He sneered as he handed his sire the trinket like it felt dirty on his skin. “Is it just my imagination, or are these false gods getting uglier?”
“They’re not false to the Kryptonians.” Dick pointed out.
The latest Robin glared at him. “You don’t get to have an opinion on any of this.”
“Why not?” The elder brother laughed a little in surprise.
Damian gestured at the blue bird symbol on acrobat’s costume. “You’re a borderline traitor. Running around in the image, and using the name, of one of their lesser gods, and for what? I have long since decided your adoration of the alien and his culture is more than half just to spite Baba. Despite all he has done for you, you act more my age than I do.”
“Hey!” Nightwing snapped back, mostly because the boy’s words held enough truth to sting a little.
“Enough you two, I know you can focus better than this and the situation just escalated. Whoever is doing this knows about the Cave, they know who we all are beyond our civilian identities.” Bruce barked and his eldest and youngest went dutifully silent.
“What do you need me to do Bruce?” Dick asked, despite the rough patches, the hood still outweighed the bad between them, the Bat Clan was still his family.
“Contact Jason, just to give him a heads up. Please let him know he’s welcome to join us if he’s willing and free to do so. Damian, run upstairs and tell Alfred and Tim to pack for an extended stay at the Fortress of Solitude.”
“We’re going to live with the alien?” The boy blanched indignantly.
“Our home has been breeched to the deepest level and the Watchtower before that. I highly doubt Titan tower will be any safer.” Bruce scowled. “Now please don’t make this harder than it already is Damian. We need to fall back and plan.”
“But bunking with one who might be deceiving us? Baba, what if this was all Superman’s plan in the first place? To trap you in his home?” Robin protested, true concern for his parent in every word.
Bruce smiled lovingly down at his child. “Then it’s a good thing I’ll have my family with me to keep me safe.” He soothed.
“C’mon Babybird,” Dick shook his head and put an arm around the boy’s shoulders. “you’ll never out stubborn him. He has too many years of experience on the both of us.”
Damian shrugged him off and huffed “Only Jason gets to call me that and keep his lungs, that’s your only warning Grayson.” and marched off to do as his father asked.
Dick hesitated to do the same just long enough to ask, “And what will you be doing in the meantime Old Bat?”
“What else? Notifying our future host that he’s about to have a lot of company for the foreseeable future.”
***************************************
Thankfully Clark’s friendly, if not a bit odd, staff of robots got the Bat Clan situated in their rooms for them, because Bruce couldn’t wait to get down to business.
The first order of which, was convincing him that this latest incident was not a declaration of war. Rather that the perpetrator(s) were still following Superman’s theory of whomever was doing this to empower and protect the Wayne family. An idol such as this belonged in a war room or command center, such as the Cave.
“Mordo, god of strength, and patron of the Warriors Guild. Invoked in times of combat for both defense and offense, and law enforcement.” Clark recited like an old school lesson. “He’d literally be on your side, if you believed in him.”
“That explains why he has even more arms than the last one.” Tim smiled crookedly and joked “I half expected you to say he was the god of multitasking.”
“For real. This guy would give Arnold a run for his money in Mr. Atlas competition.” Dick snorted.
Unlike Vohc, Mordo’s body had normal portions, aside from being built like a professional weightlifting champion, with classic masculine good looks like a golden age comic book hero. His only odd feature was his six arms, each holding a different item, such as a chain, a barbell, an old fashioned weight, a large rock, a sword and shield.
“That doesn’t look like marble, but I’m not familiar with the material.” Damian muttered, looking at the seven inch tall figure standing proudly upon the table. It towered over the others.
“Wait, you mean there’s something that you actually don’t know?” Nightwing was genuinely surprised.
Tim tried to hide his laugh behind a cough and Damian glared at them like he was the one with heat ray vision instead of their host.
Alfred ignored their sibling antics and shared their findings. “Mr. Gary and I have surmised that the stone is called lonsdaleite. It is stronger than diamonds, able to withstand pressures up to one hundred fifty-two GPA, whereas diamonds will break around ninety-seven. Appropriate for a god of strength, I must say.”
“It’s native to Earth, though exceedingly rare.” Gary added.
“So the person doing this has extensive knowledge of Earth symbolism, the best example being the use of Rose Quartz for the goddess of love’s statue as Rose Quartz is believed to draw love and happiness to its owner. In addition to this, they also have access to extremely rare resources.” Bruce frowned, side eyeing his lover “Like a certain young lady with very high clearance at a facility like Star Labs perhaps.”
“Bruce,” Clark warned “We discussed this several times. Please drop it. Kara grew up on Earth, yes, and she is in charge of our House’s spiritual well being but that doesn’t mean…”
“Wait, what? Whose idea was that?” Dick asked. The sweet, yet wild, blonde was the last person he’d put in charge of such an important task.
“The spiritual well being of a household has always been a woman’s domain. That is until the Rao totality movement came to pass. Now it’s mainly his high priests, always male individuals.” Gary explained.
“Like how Christianity was manipulated to strip women of power in there communities here on Earth.” Tim looked a little sad at the thought. He was a compassionate kid and history class often made him frustrated and sad. It was one of many reasons he preferred science and computers.
“Since this is all encompassing the old religion of Krypton, we are more than likely dealing with a female. Regardless whether she’s any kin to Superman or not.” Damian summed it all up and rolled his eyes at the drama.
Clark looked uneasy, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “I don’t envy her when we figure out who she is. This is Kara’s responsibility and even though she can be a little crazy in her personal life, she takes her Kryptonian duties very seriously. Being the head woman of a house is a great honor and she is determined to do her best in memory of our mothers.”
“I have a bad feeling about this.” Dick grimaced “Kara and I practically grew up together, you all know I love her like a sister. But I’ll also be the first to admit she tends to act before thinking things through completely and then to assume just because she intended no harm that there will be no harm done.”
“Let’s look at this logically.” Tim held up his hands placatingly “Superman, why are you so certain it’s not her?”
“Why wouldn’t she tell me if it was?” Clark spread his hands wide with a baffled look on his handsome face “I mean just look at all the chaos this is causing.”
“Perhaps the young Mistress wished for it to be some sort of surprise present? Your anniversary is coming up Master Kal, and I seem to recall those are important to Earthlings such as your intended.” Gary began to hypothesize but was interrupted by one of his subordinates hailing him over the intercoms system.
((Isaac to Gary.))
“Isaac?” Damian whispered, incredulous.
“Why not?” Tim smiled, amused by the mechanical people.
((Yes, what is it?)) the robot acknowledged.
((There is a rather belligerent young Earthling at the Fortress’ main entrance demanding entry. I’ll link you to the live feed.))
((Hey! Let me in you bargain basement Go-bot bastard, I’m freezing my nads off out here!))
“Jason has arrived.” Clark grinned in spite of himself. “Let him in Isaac, he’s family.”
***********************************
Disregarding all attempts at congenial welcomes or offers of hospitality made by the small squadron of robot servants and their master, and ignoring the questioning looks of his elders and siblings, Jason slammed down a sixth idol onto the table next to Mordo.
“Here’s another extra terrestrial Barbie to add to your collection B, and you’re not going to like where I found it.” The Red Hood growled.
The statuette stood as tall as the one of Mordo and was made of a semi-precious stone known as Cornelian. It ranged in hue from a rusty red to burnt orange, opaque with veins of creamy white though-out it.
It was another goddess, Amazonian in figure with a massive mop of hair that a certain Disney Princess could relate to, her expression was stern and haughty. This was the image of a woman who was used to getting what she wanted whether you liked it or not.
Clark looked like he was going to be ill. “Cynthonna, mistress of ice and guardian of the dead.”
Bruce’s eyes went wide as he looked to Jason, silently willing his most rebellious son not to say what he had to say.
“Well that makes perfect sense, because I decided to swing by the family plot to make sure this prick, who obviously has no boundaries, hadn’t messed with my grave or that of Bruce’s parents, and guess where this stone bitch was placed? Right on top of their headstone!” Jason glared at their host like this breach of privacy was somehow all his fault.
“Clark,” Bruce’s voice had gone husky with barely contained emotion. He actually felt dizzy from the whirlwind of shock and disbelief.
Alfred steadied him with a hand to his shoulder.
“Bruce, I mean, it didn’t hurt them any…” Kal-El tried in an effort to comfort. He reached out only to have his hand violently slapped away.
“You learned just yesterday that my father was Catholic and my mother Jewish. You grew up Methodist Clark, you went to church every Sunday, you know your commandments. ‘Thou shalt have no other gods before me.’ It’s the first and most important of them! No harm?! I may not share in my parents faith but I will defend with my dieing breath theirs and everyone else’s rights to it. This has crossed the line.”
Part of him, that sounded suspiciously like Batman, told him with calm logic that he was overreacting, that this was the man he loved and he wasn’t to blame, that he would never intentionally let him be hurt like this.
But another part, one that sounded like an angry teenager still dealing with unfounded survivor’s guilt, insisted he was completely within his rights to feel so violated after every aspect of his life had been invaded, and now the sanctity of his parents final resting place had been tainted. If his lover truly cared about him, he’d stop making excuses for the one they all knew must be committing this thoughtless misconduct.
“Congratulations to whoever this douche bag is, because they’ve achieved the impossible. I am in complete agreement with B for the first time in a decade.” Jason growled, crossing his arms and allowing Alfred to rub some warmth back into them. He always did have a soft spot for the old man.
“Yeah this,” Tim fidgeted and adverted his gaze from their host “this fees kinda gross, not gonna lie.” he muttered.
“It’s bullshit.”
“Damian!” Dick snapped.
“Well it is!” The twelve year old snapped back, and as soon as the eldest son turned away to shake his head and sigh, the family’s youngest and second eldest shared a fist bump.
“Bruce,”
Alfred forgoing formality and dropping the ‘master’ title was not lost on Clark as he bore witness.
“Perhaps you should take some time to process this,” he sent a pointed look at Clark “alone.”
“Yes, I think that’s a good idea, thank you Alfred.” His voice was so quiet and his expression so tired it damn near broke Superman’s heart.
To see the one he loved look so defeated and knowing he was partially to blame simply because he let his pride get the better of him…
“I will get to the bottom of this Bruce, I swear to God…”
“Which one?” Tim muttered, and everyone reflectively looked at the six figures on the table. They starred back as though mocking the mortals.
**************************************
Clark gritted his perfect teeth and caught the urge to chuck his cell phone across the bedroom.
Kara had still not answered his texts. His inquiries had started out polite but the longer she ghosted him, the more insistent he became. He would have felt guilty about how belligerent he was being had it not eroded his belief in her supposed innocence.
His cousin had seen the messages, his phone told him that, he had called all their friends both mutual and just Kara’s, he even rang up a few of her exes, no one had seen her in the last hour and a half. Exactly the time he had begun asking her if she was behind all this and explaining the turmoil it was causing the Wayne family.
Star Labs had confirmed she hadn’t left Earth and he had alerted the JLA to not let her use the Zeta Beam technology and to notify him immediately if she even tried for it.
She couldn’t avoid him forever. He could only hope he still had a boyfriend when she did come up for air.
“Damn it Cuz, this is looking really bad right now.” He growled to himself and rubbed his face, running his fingers through his hair.
Bruce still hasn’t come to bed.
Clark had started to believe his lover had decided to use one of the spare rooms, or was perhaps sharing with one of his family members. The journalist sighed and punched the bridge of his nose, clenching his eyes shut for a moment.
Bruce hadn’t even been mad in the beginning, he just wanted to talk to Kara.
But Clark had secretly been a little offended at the implications that his cousin would force their culture onto someone without asking first, and he had kept defending her at every juncture, gaslighting the one he cared about most on this or any other world, even going so far as to belittle Bruce’s skills as a detective.
His phone dinged, a response at last to his last text.
11:28 pm
Big Blue: Dang it Kara, please answer me! Bruce is in shambles over this, he’s even sleeping somewhere else tonight. He’s the man I want to marry someday and he won’t even share my bed right now! At least two of his boys must hate me, I know Alfred must, from the look he gave me earlier tonight. And you know what? I can’t rightly blame any of them! Why the hell did you involve his parents? You know his history! Have you lost your goddamn mind?!
1:08 am
Sunshine_Grrrl: I only wanted to welcome them into the family. I never meant for any of this to happen, I’m so sorry Kal!
Clark hesitated to answer her. It would serve her right if he ghosted her back, even for just one night. He blinked back hot tears as he wrote,
1:13 am
Big Blue: I could lose him over this. Not just as my lover. Kara, he may never speak to me again.
1:15 am
Sunshine_Grrrl: Please don’t say that!
1:23 am
Sunshine_Grrrl: Kal?
1:36 am
Sunshine_Grrl: Kal, please, answer me! Say something little cousin!
1:42 am
Big Blue: Goodnight Kara. Don’t text me again, I’ll contact you when I’m ready.
With that done, Clark shut off his phone and prayed to no deity in particular that she wouldn’t show up in person anytime soon.
*************************************
It was 3:47 in the morning when Clark felt his lover slip between the covers and the other side of the bed dip under his muscular form.
The Kansas native almost laughed at the intrusive thought that assaulted his mind. A creature of the night sneaking into his bed during the witching hour.
“I know you’re awake Kal.” Bruce whispered, still with their backs to each other.
Jor-El’s son tensed and dared not move. He didn’t want to risk driving his boyfriend away with some new thoughtless misstep.
“I’m not mad, well, I was for a while but…” his normally strong baritone sounded so vulnerable, it made Clark’s heart hurt.
Just as he was debating with himself on what to do or even if he should do anything at all, the Kryptonian realized Bruce’s shoulders were trembling where they touched his.
He didn’t need his super hearing to catch it, the Dark Knight was sobbing.
“Bruce!” Clark rolled over and embraced his man tightly, attempting to kiss away his tears.
“Fuck, damn it!” He growled, but continued to cry as he tried in vain to push Kal-El away. “I hate feeling helpless, I hate not knowing what to do, I hate failing my family, and I especially hate that you didn’t believe me! Damn it Clark, I was… I was scared alright?! I admit it! I was scared for my family, my children, and you didn’t listen to me! You’re supposed to be the one, after all this time, the one I could always count on and actually see myself spending the rest of my life with. And you just kept telling me I was wrong!”
Clark held on through it all, clinging to his Love like that little girl in the old fairytale Ma used to read to him when he was a little boy, East of the Sun West of the Moon.
Eventually Bruce exhausted himself, going limp in his boyfriend’s embrace. As he finally passed out, he whispered “Sometimes I feel like I never left that alley…”
And now it was Clark’s turn to weep into his lover’s dark hair. “I’ll make this right Bruce,” he quietly vowed with all his heart “By all the gods, I will somehow fix this for us.”