United States.
Gotham...
Batman.... no. Currently, it wasn't Batman but Bruce Wayne sitting in his after workout casual clothes scrolling through a massive amount of information before his eyes on the Bat computer.
Bruce was a rather strict fellow, strict to others and even more so to himself.
When he wasn't out in his other persona, the billionaire playboy of Wayne Industries, he spent his time either fighting crime on the streets of Gotham, or going through massive paperwork.
Just like right now.
If he didn't need to create a cover to take people's thoughts away from guessing that he was The Dark Knight, Bruce would have abandoned his second self a long time ago to increase work efficiency.
"Master Bruce, I feel the need to inform you for the Nth time that doing such a large amount of work over such long periods is not good for your health. And it honestly worries me".
Alfred said as he stepped out of the elevator that led from the Wayne Manor above the Bat cave with a tray of high caffeine coffee and a plate of Bruce's favorite snacks.
His expression was solemn and serious, like a worried uncle.
"I'm Batman Alfred. There are some things I need to do. Besides, it's only been a few days". Bruce said lightly.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, Master Bruce, but you have been at this for a month. If you consider a months time as only a few days, I might have to rewire my thinking process". Alfred replied.
Bruce answered with his right to remain silent.
He took the large mug of coffee from his loyal butler and didn't even flinch as he drank the scalding hot, bitter as tar, ambrosia.
Bruce had to sigh a bit in his heart. Out of everyone in the world, Alfred understood him the best.
A small period of time passed as Bruce continued to immerse himself in going through file after file. Leading Alfred to ultimately break the silence.
"Has Mr. Kent's condition made any improvements?" His question caused Bruce to stiffen a bit. Four seconds later, Bruce slumped back into his chair.
A weary sigh adorned his handsome features as he uttered the word in irritation. "No".
Alfred's face showed a look of slight disappointment, but quickly returned to normal.
"Worry not, Master Bruce, I believe Mr. Kent can pull through this. He is Superman, after all". He comforted with the best words he could muster.
"Hopefully....." Bruce said in reply.
One month. It had been a whole forty-two days since the invasion above Central City and a lot of .... Uneventful things had taken place.
The explosion of the alien vessel was beyond the League's expectations. Something they certainly didn't see coming.
At first, Batman didn't believe it when the report came from the Watchtower. The two green lanterns were unconscious, leaving the only available leaguers at the time capable of chasing, Martian Manhunter to initiate pursuit.
The good news was, after two days of searching, they managed to find Superman's unconscious body in deep space. Of course, at that time, reinforcements had arrived in the form of Captain Atom, Cyborg and Shazam.
Bad news, Clark was comatose. Even now, forty days later, he still hadn't woken up for reasons unclear to the League.
Bruce remembered how Clark looked like when they had recovered him. His wounds had healed, but the scars hadn't. His suit was once again in a mess and the fact that Clark had fought yet again another life and death deciding battle made him feel grim.
It seemed as there was a possible threat dangling ahead of them. The world was getting more terrifying with each passing day.
Now, even someone as strong as Superman wasn't safe anymore.
Clark was immediately put into a solar regeneration pod. He had been in that same pod absorbing solar radiation up till this moment.
Thankfully, Clark wasn't in a red sun radiated containment space when the ship exploded, or that would certainly be the end of The Man Of Steel.
As if that weren't enough, earth experienced a continuous streak of meteor showers. Most of the debris from the exploding spaceship made its way back to earth.
Luckily, it didn't cause too many casualties. Some fell into the sea, others in mountain areas. The ones that caused the most casualties fell in a small village, a city in Russia and one in Ohio.
The casualties from those three crashes numbered in thousands. Coupled with those added from Superman's battle, Bruce didn't even want to think about it.
In the past forty days, the League has been stretched thin in search and rescue operations, offering relief and compensation to the affected.
As for reconstruction processes...
Bruce shook his head to get rid of those burdening thoughts.
"... I'm not worried about Clark. Cyborg said his vital signs are fine…." A news feed appeared on the screen of the Bat computer.
"I am worried however about how he would react when he wakes up to see this".
The screen changed to show a published article.
Alfred read the title and his facial features scrunched up a little.
[Superman's Battle Casualties: 46,321 killed, 94,749 injured, 12,024 Missing]
"And this". Bruce changed the page and another one popped up.
[Man Of Steel? Or Damage God: Clash of Superman causes 923 Million in property damage to Central City]
With a click, the screen changed again.
[Alien spaceship arrives and leaves without firing a single attack, Yet Central City is left ruined]
[G. Gordon Godfrey Reveals The Root Cause Of The Alien Invasion. The Justice league Is To Fault]
[World Government Announcement: The Alien Amari worked Together With The Military To Destroy Alien Ship]
[Is Martian Manhunter Related To The Mysterious Invaders?]
[Justice League Yet To Release Statement]
[Are superheroes causing more harm than good]
[Superman destroyed Central City To Protect A Mass Murderer]
"Preposterous!" The old butler yelled in righteous indignation.
"These people certainly don't know the in's and out's of the situation. After all you and the league have done for them, human beings are truly fickle". He gnashed his teeth and spat out his words in rage.
Bruce didn't say a word. Just tapped another key on the keyboard.
It didn't show headlines this time but a video on the G. Gordon Godfrey show.
"..... And that's the reason, folks. It turns out that the reason for all of Central City's destruction was because the Justice league decided to harbor an alien. And not just any alien, one who fought Superman and nearly ended up destroying Metropolis".
The video playing in the background was the one of Mericrozz calling out Lobo's tank from Star Labs. The camera froze and zoomed in sharply to let everyone see the features of the person within it.
"This isn't just any random extraterrestrial ladies and gentlemen, this is an incredibly dangerous alien. One capable of causing mass destruction, and what did the League do? Did they hand it to the government? No, of course not. Since they certainly know better than we do. After all, they're the Justice League". His tone was dripping with sarcasm.
"If you don't remember, or you don't clearly understand whom this alien might be and what he can do, then here's a little reminder from two months ago".
His words dropped, and the screen instantly split into two halves. The first one retained the video of Star Labs, and the second replayed the camera footage taken by Lois Lane in the Metropolis incident.
[As I said, Lobo is a mercenary who hunts for money. He has annihilated civilizations, torn apart families, and has more enemies across the universe than earth has people who are vegetarians. Did it never cross your mind that I just might be one of them who lost someone dear to his hands and I'm looking to settle the score]
[Or do you also want to deny me my chance at revenge to save someone with no relation to you, or your planet and has only tried to kill you and caused more chaos in the time he was here because according to your moral logic, which I by this point find to be extremely absurd, me killing him is not right?]
"And there you have it. The news is right there folks. A Mass murderer who was slaughtered entire civilizations. An entity who has more enemies in the universe than we earthlings can possibly imagine, and Central City was just unlucky enough to face the revengeful retaliation of one of those enemies. Why did that happen? Because Superman and the Justice League stopped the alien Amari from finishing off this bastard when he had the chance".
Gordon said in front of the camera while wearing his expensive suit.
"I mean look at it with clear eyes. If the Justice League had let this alien be killed by his pursuer right then and there, none of this would have happened. That's right, I believe these attacking invaders were similarly here to seek revenge on their target. I believe my words can be backed up since the spaceship didn't fire a single attack in its short ten minutes of being on Earth. Yet, what did the league do? They conflicted with them, and due to that fight, Central City was left in ruins".
"Ladies and gentlemen, I believe it's time we ask ourselves, is it truly a good idea to have an organization consisting of powerful aliens and other creatures guarding our planet while they don't even have the courage to show their true faces to the public? What are the true identities of the Justice league? Well, we don't even know".
"The league's reckless decision has caused the deaths of thousands of people and injured many more. We have to do something about this. We the citizens deserve an explanation..." The video paused with the picture of Gordon banging his fist on the table with a hideous look.
The cave was deathly silent and Batman looked grim.
There was more to see that he hadn't shown Alfred.
Various headlines of newspapers, video feeds, civilian protests, online movements, Internet discussions, trending hashtags.
[No More Aliens]
[Too Many Casualties]
[We Don't Want To Die]
[#Security]
[The League is too much]
[Battle Between Good And Evil. Why Should We Suffer For It]
[The League is killing us]
Various hot searches were all over the internet in the past month concerning the invasion. To be honest, it was all overwhelming. If I wasn't someone like Batman who had strong mental fortitude, they probably would have had a mental breakdown.
"Movements". Bruce said solemnly.
"Although I hate to admit it, there's some truth to what has been said. It's not the full story, and there's a lot more underneath, but at this point, nobody cares".
That was the truth. It didn't matter what truly happened. Whether the aliens were there to get revenge on Lobo or not, the people certainly didn't care.
"This is why I'm still down here, Alfred. I'm Batman. In times like this, someone has to do the work. I feel it in my gut, the future isn't looking bright for us. I don't know what threat is on its way, but I have to be ready". This was the truth.
This was also one of the fundamental differences between the two most famous heroes of DC.
Superman would hope for the best, while Batman would expect and prepare for the worst. All so they could be ready for whatever the universe threw at them.
They had to be.
If not, the world would be doomed.
Alfred kept silent without saying a word. In the end, a sigh escaped his lips.
"So what are you planning on doing, Master Bruce". In times like this, Alfred knew what Bruce needed the most was support. And he was ready to give it to him, however he could.
Bruce tapped on the computer keyboard, causing the majority of the files to disappear.
"First things first. I have to find it, who is behind all this". His words fell into Alfred's ears, stunning the latter.
"Master Bruce, you mean..."
"Yes Alfred, I do. The news suddenly launched onto this topic, the criticism of the league went over the roof. Gordon's simultaneous attacks. If it's one, it's normal. Two, a coincidence. But three? Then that's a problem. Somebody is deliberately targeting the league, and I'm going to find out who". Bruce said in a serious voice.
Alfred took a deep breath. He was seriously considering taking up retirement.
"I'm too old for this". The voice said inwardly.
"Do you have any trails?"
"I've been looking into that whenever I can for the past month, and yes. Mainly one". The computer showed a picture.
"Luthor!"
"Luthor!"
Both of them called out simultaneously.
Bruce's eyes showed a profound look.
The newly elected President of the United States, something that Bruce honestly wished wouldn't happen but hey, you can't always get what you want, Lex Luthor was his prime suspect. No, not suspect. Bruce could practically confirm it was him.
Motive? Luthor had it.
Resources to pull it off? Luthor had it.
Plus, there were hardly any people who could get that footage. The league had tried their best to make sure it was wiped.
Mainly because the whole matter with Lobo was a delicate subject. Unfortunately, things had gone south.
And coincidentally, Gordon just happened to have a relationship with Lex Luthor.
The signs were so obvious. The only question now was what was Lex planning. It certainly couldn't just be this.
Batman was sure Lex had another goal. A deeper agenda hidden behind this storm.
And after a long time of analyzing the components, he finally deduced what Lex was truly after.
The picture changed again and what was shown was the satellite footage of a city outside Gotham. A small base, or headquarters, as Bruce liked to think of it.
"Luthor. What are you planning?"