The Helmet of Fate is made of Nth metal. This metal poses a lethal threat not only to Kryptonians, but even to beings like Barbatos—entities that exist beyond the universe itself.
The divine power of the King of Order had distorted reality, rewriting the cause and outcome of Joey's injuries. Now that the truth had been revealed once again, the injuries were restored as well.
Along with them came the accumulated pain, which was why Joey had previously screamed in agony.
But after the initial wave of extreme, overwhelming pain, Joey finally managed to calm himself.
The dozen or so wounds where the fragments had pierced his skin looked severe—and in truth, they were not minor at all.
However, the human body still has a strong capacity for self-regulation. Perhaps due to adrenaline, or some other biological mechanism, Joey gradually pulled himself out of the pain that had made him want to roll on the floor, leaving only a lingering numbness.
Only then did he truly begin to realize how awkward the situation between him and Diana—both completely exposed to each other—had become.
This was one of the reasons he had repeatedly told Batman to keep an eye on things.
Fucking Batman...
Before Batman, there was clearly something even more important to deal with. Joey forced himself to call out to the Amazon in front of him.
"Diana…"
"Not now!"
Diana, however, was far more composed than Joey. Under his gaze, she didn't even bother to grab something to cover herself.
She opened the standing wardrobe again—the same one that had contained those earlier toys—and began rummaging through it. She pulled with such force that one of the old, rusted drawers snapped off entirely.
Diana's strength had returned as well.
This room in Bruce Wayne's guest suite was, in every sense, fully prepared. Under Diana's destructive search, she quickly found a medical kit for emergency wound treatment.
Not bothering with the latch, she flicked it open with ease—the aluminum lid flew open like it was made of paper. She intended to treat Joey's wounds first.
"You're still bleeding."
"No, this level of bleeding won't kill me!"
Of course he was still bleeding—Joey had only recovered his memories, not his powers like Diana had.
That meant he was still completely immobilized.
During their earlier 'game,' his hands were still tied to the bed.
After testing his strength, Joey confirmed that his Kryptonian abilities had not yet returned.
"Can you untie me first? My powers haven't come back yet!"
Right now, Joey wasn't just physically restrained by the Amazon—he was restrained in every other sense as well.
After what had just happened between them—something that could only be described as intensely physical—Joey could not remain as composed as Diana.
Unlike Diana's wild and dominant behavior in bed, Joey had been the passive one.
And now, with his memories restored, he could only describe his earlier self as half-willing at best—or at worst, pretending to resist.
There was no way to justify it now.
"As you wish."
Carefully avoiding the sharp Nth metal fragments embedded in Joey's body, Diana bent down, still unclothed, and moved over him.
At that moment, Joey's mind told him he should probably close his eyes like a proper gentleman.
Diana applied force gently, snapping the rope binding his wrists.
Joey could only acknowledge that she truly possessed a body blessed by the gods—where strength and grace existed in perfect harmony.
After that brief, striking moment, their eyes met.
There was no anger in Diana's gaze—only amusement.
"Like what you see?"
"Just like Aphrodite of Milos, Diana."
Now that his hands were free again, Joey felt he needed to end this extremely awkward situation as quickly as possible. His first step, however, was to pull out the fragments embedded in his body.
"But you're even more… guh!"
After being a invulnerable being for so long, becoming mortal again clearly left Joey somewhat unaccustomed.
The two fragments embedded in his face came out easily when he pulled them free—but they also brought out a surge of blood and fresh waves of pain.
In a sense, it was as if he had once again taken a point-blank shell blast to the face, fully engulfed by shrapnel—except this shrapnel was made of Nth metal.
"Let me help you."
Wonder Woman brought over bandages and carefully wrapped the wounds on Joey's face that had worsened due to his reckless removal of the fragments. Such basic first aid was nothing difficult for an Amazon warrior.
Diana gently bandaged him.
"Until we find a properly trained doctor, you shouldn't remove those fragments for now."
Just as Joey was thinking about where to find a trained doctor—and about his Kryptonian physiology—there came a calm knock at the guest room door.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Joey, Diana, are you alright?!"
It was Batman's voice.
"Wait!"
Without even caring about the fragments still embedded in his body, Joey shot up from the bed in a jolt—only to have another wave of pain flare through him due to the sudden movement.
Now was clearly not the time to worry about pain. Both Joey and Diana's first priority was to find their clothes, which had been scattered all over the room during the earlier chaos.
Batman, having retrieved the fragment, stood calmly outside the door. Catwoman tugged at his sleeve, leaning in to whisper:
"Do we really have to check on them right now? Maybe they're in the middle of something important!"
After everything that had happened, she still subconsciously treated this Bruce as the familiar playboy she knew.
"I'll bet fifty bucks someone's going to punch or slap you when they come out."
Batman shot her a deeply disapproving glance.
"I will not bet on a losing—"
Creak.
Before Bruce could finish, the door suddenly swung open.
A shirtless figure burst out—his face wrapped in bandages—and immediately threw a punch at Batman:
"FUCK YOU, Bruce Wayne!"
For a split second, Bruce even wondered if Mister M had also appeared to ambush him.
But Batman had already anticipated the attack and sidestepped it with ease.
What was he about to say again?
He wouldn't bet on unwinnable outcomes. At this rate, whatever was happening inside was clearly far beyond the point of negotiation.
Whether or not the two inside had recovered their memories, Joey coming out and throwing a punch at him was inevitable.
Seeing Bruce narrowly avoid the punch, Catwoman couldn't help but laugh, nudging his waist:
"I win. Pay up."
But Batman was no longer in the mood for games. From Superman's stance and the injuries on his chest, he realized something serious:
"Your powers didn't come back?"
Bang!
After catching the off-balance Joey, Diana stepped in and threw a single punch—cracking an expensive antique doorframe effortlessly.
"No," she said calmly.
"He still hasn't regained his powers."