Gotham.
Inside a secluded apartment on Naihe Island, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Supergirl sat in the living room.
Batman, clad in his iconic black suit, stood out starkly against the brightly lit space.
"Hey, Batman, you always talk about lurking in the shadows, but here you are in the light. You look… off," Hal teased.
"If you feel out of place, turn off the lights," Batman replied, his gaze cold.
"Then you'll be the first to suffer in the dark."
Supergirl put down her half-eaten pizza.
"It's just excitement directed at Batman," she said with a shrug.
"No, this is a reasonable question," Hal insisted.
Ignoring him, Batman spread several maps across the table.
"I've reviewed your information. You claim to come from the future, hmm… incredible technology. Suppose you have a time traveler like Doc Brown and a machine… ignoring all paradoxes about grandmothers and Hitler…"
Hal interrupted, "It's not a time machine, and it's not Doc Brown. We have Flash and a particle accelerator."
"Flash?" Batman raised an eyebrow.
"A very fast superhero. You'll appreciate him in the future. Never mind," Hal waved off the explanation, seeing Batman's growing confusion.
"Think of him as… a consumable time machine."
Batman shook his head, steering the discussion back.
"The key to stopping your enemy is finding a weakness. In your future, your homeland may fall, perhaps the entire Earth. We must extract every clue from your knowledge."
He pointed to a map.
"The target might be in six central states, with Kansas at the center, specifically between Blue Valley and Smallville."
Another map revealed:
"Blue Valley was once a military center, later abandoned and purchased by a corporation. It has an extensive underground tunnel network, potentially spanning all six states."
Batman's gaze swept the group.
"Your objective is Blue Valley and Smallville. Considering the arrival of a steel-bodied person in your future, I suspect your targets are Adrian Kent and Clark Kent."
Wonder Woman and the others fell silent.
"So the key points are two Supermen and a small town?" she asked.
"I cannot be certain. The data is limited," Batman replied, rolling up the Blue Valley map.
"But your presence here is no accident. Fate brought you."
Hal shifted topics.
"Have you seen recent Metropolis news?"
Supergirl tilted her head.
"Alien invasion? Explosions?"
"Not aliens, but close," Hal said.
"Someone robbed a bank, endured a dozen police officers' firepower, and vanished. A car even exploded. No ordinary person could survive that."
"Super strength, bulletproof, super speed, heat vision… Are we talking about Adrian or Clark?" Supergirl mused.
"Considering Clark's nature, it's not him. It must be Adrian!" she declared.
"He's trending toward villainy. We have to stop him."
Hal hesitated.
"Even a young Adrian isn't easy to deal with."
Supergirl's voice hardened.
"I won't watch my brother go astray."
"Batman," she asked, "can we use your tech to track him?"
"My surveillance covers only Gotham," he said, pause heavy in the air.
"But you always find a way, right? You can locate anyone," Supergirl pressed.
Batman considered, then nodded.
"I'll find a way."
He spread his cape and disappeared into the shadows.
"Batman can always be trusted," Supergirl said quietly.
"Too much trust is dangerous," Wonder Woman replied.
"He's helping, but privately, he probes everyone's weaknesses, preparing contingencies."
Hal's grin vanished.
"He trusts no one, but he's still a good man."
---
Metropolis, evening.
Clark exited a small bank, grabbing a rushing officer by the wrist and tossing him backward.
Thud!
The officer landed in a trash can, stunned.
Clark, hooded and comically dressed, clapped his hands, activated his super speed, and vanished into the night.
Approaching an abandoned factory to change, he sensed footsteps.
Hal, Diana, and Kara appeared, confronting him.
"You can't run, Adrian!" Kara shouted, mistaking Clark for Adrian because of his build and hood.
Clark turned, smirking, and removed the hood.
"You thought I was Adrian? Sorry to disappoint."
"Cl-Clark?" Kara stammered.
"No, not Clark Kent. My name is Kal-El," he said.
Kara's shock deepened.
"How could you… do something like this?"
Clark shrugged.
"Why can't I? I'm not the subservient boy you remember. This is the real me. You can get to know me again."
Kara's glare intensified.
"Do Jonathan and Martha know? And Adrian? They wouldn't approve!"
"That's my business," Clark replied, impatient.
"I make my own choices."
"I'll tell Adrian!" Kara warned.
Clark laughed.
"You thought I was him. Full of prejudice, Kara. I fear no one."
Bang!
Clark struck first, transforming into a streak of light.
Kara, caught off guard, slammed through a wall, dust and debris scattering around her.
Clark did not pursue further.
He stood over the ruin, coolly observing her, untouched and unbothered.
_____
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