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-(Michael's P.O.V.)-
It had been ten minutes since I'd dealt with Captain Atom, his consciousness now trapped inside my Yellow Lantern ring.
His mind had been a maze of calculations and contingency plans, but I'd pulled the location of the exorcism from him easily enough.
Wayne Manor. More specifically...the Batcave.
I expected a battlefield when I landed on the charred grounds of one of Gotham's most iconic estates. But this—this was carnage.
The once-proud manor was a skeletal wreck, consumed by the cold, blue flames of the Ghost Rider. Flames I once wielded, but now...they were in the hands of someone else.
What the fuck happened here?
'The first step to understanding one another is to listen.' Sarah's voice echoed in my mind, urging me to stop, think.
I softly landed, my boots quietly crunching over charred earth.
The air was thick with the acrid stench of sulfur and burnt stone. A few Justice League members huddled around something on the ground.
Wonder Woman stood closest to the remains of the manor, her sword in hand—but the blade was half-melted, its usual indestructible edge now just a jagged stump.
She turned as I approached, her expression hard but resigned. "Stop. Oh, it's you..."
Her voice lacked its usual fire, and she didn't raise her sword any further.
Her eyes narrowed at my new costume.
"Where is Captain Atom?"
"Safe. For now. I'm here to exchange him for the Rid-ack!"
I found my neck caught in her grip.
"Diana, let him go. We...need his help."
Zatara stated, in a defeated voice.
Surprisingly, she did.
Behind her, Green Lantern, Shazam, and Zatara hovered near a scorched corpse, its blackened trench coat barely clinging to the ruined body. Constantine. Even in death, he looked like he'd been though hell.
My heart dropped at the sight, Constantine was a cockroach, killing him was no easy task. It's safe to say, someone royally fucked up.
"The ritual… it failed," Zatara finally said, his voice low, strained. His eyes were fixed on the corpse of the man who had once been his friend. "We lost Bruce. The Rider... took him."
"What?" I almost couldn't believe it. The words hung in the air, heavy and unreal. "Bruce is...?"
"He's the Ghost Rider now," Zatara confirmed. His hands clenched at his sides as he spoke, frustration and sorrow mixing in his features. "We couldn't stop it. Constantine tried, but…"
My eyes drifted back to the body. Constantine hadn't just failed, he'd paid the price. Not to sorry about it though.
"This is what happens when you deal with a force beyond your control. You should have never taken it from me."
I couldn't keep the vindictive note out of my words.
"It was a mistake."
Zatara said.
They looked regretful.
"And it gets worse," Shazam muttered, his voice quieter than usual, "He took the Batwing. It was... on fire. He flew into space, straight for the Watchtower."
("Ring, elaborate ")
("The Watchtower- a space station the justice League are secretly building above the Earth- According to Captain Atom's memories.")
"Why?" I asked, but the answer was already forming in my mind, piecing together the bits of information I knew about the Rider and the Ring's data on the Watchtower.
"He's going to use the Zetabeam," Green Lantern said, stepping closer, his body glowing with the faintest hint of green energy. "To amplify the Penance Stare. Focus it. Channel it through the Zetabeam terminals all across Earth."
"That'll—" I paused, the horror dawning on me. If Bruce really intended to do what they thought... "It'll burn everyone."
The Rider's influence had turned him bat shit insane. If this doesn't warrant the biggest, 'I told you so' in history...
Zatara nodded grimly. "Bruce has always been haunted by his past. Now, with the Ghost Rider feeding off his trauma, he's taken that to the extreme. He thinks he can purify the world. Rid it of sin."
"He's using the Penance Stare as a weapon, but it's a tool."
A tool that could wipe out millions if used wrongly.
"Speaking of tools and weapons...that ring, where did you get it?"
Green Lantern's energy flared. His eyes locked onto mine, and I could feel the tension growing between us.
"This isn't coming off my finger, Jordan. Not now, not later. So save it and tell me what the hell you're ndoing to stop the Batman who rides."
Hal's eyes flared with anger, but Zatara stepped between us, placing a hand on Hal's shoulder.
"We don't have time for this," Zatara said, his voice urgent but calm. "We need to get to the Watchtower before he activates the Zetabeam. Once he does, there's no turning back."
For a moment, none of us spoke. The weight of what we were up against settled over us like a dark cloud.
This wasn't just a battle against a rogue hero.
This was a battle to stop a ghost rider with the collective skills and experience of Batman, from doing something that could destroy the world.
Claiming back the rider just became close to impossible.
"Shazam, you're with me," Wonder Woman commanded, her voice steady despite the situation. "We'll take a ZetaTube to the Watchtower. Lantern, you follow us up there."
"The Zetabeams are on lockdown."
GL informed her.
"We can assume he's responsible."
"Dammit. That means he's already started. I was hoping the others would keep him away from the control room. If only I had some magical energy left...I could teleport us."
Zatara muttered.
"Plan b then. We'll fly."
Wonder Woman said as she turned to me next. "Mr.Anders, you know the Ghost Rider better than anyone. If we're going to have a chance at stopping him and bring Bruce back we need you. You in?"
I looked at the burning remains of Wayne Manor, the flames still licking at the sky like vengeful spirits.
"On on condition," I said, stepping forward. "You'll put the Rider back where he belongs. Me."
I slapped my chest.
"I'm the only one that can control him."
The four of them exchanged uneasy looks.
"In return, I'll give back your precious Captain Atom, in one piece."
That sealed the deal and they agreed.
The ring hummed on my finger as I rose into the air, Green Lantern beside me. There was no going back now. We had to stop the Batman who rides.
-General P.O.V-
The Batwing screamed through the void of space, its engines roaring with infernal fire. It's trajectory seemed to be the sun.
Superman, trapped in its burning cockpit, struggled in vain against the glowing chains binding him.
In the cabin behind him, other members of the Justice League were in a similar situation, bound in infernal chains.
From the vantage point in space, Michael, Wonder Woman, Shazam, and Green Lantern looked on in horror.
"Our friends! We need to help them!" Shazam shouted, his voice tight with urgency.
Without hesitation, Green Lantern shot forward, his ring flaring with green light as he chased the flaming Batwing. "I've got the ship! I'll bring them back before it's too late!"
Michael watched Hal disappear into the stars.
Superman was powerful, but even he wouldn't survive a direct trip into the sun.
Out of all heroes, the Man of Steel had been Emily's favorite one. Michael clenched his fists, turning his attention to the massive hell structure that was their destination.
As they neared the Watchtower, the full scale of Bruce's corruption came into view.
What was once the symbol of the Justice League's strength had been twisted into something monstrous.
The entire structure pulsed with molten fire, its once-gleaming surface now scorched black and red, like a demonic heart beating in the cold void of space.
Shazam hovered to a stop next to Michael, his fists crackling with lightning. "We go in, take down whatever defenses he's rigged up, and then—"
"We get to Bruce," Wonder Woman finished, her voice steely. Her lasso shimmered at her side, ready to strike.
The moment they breached the Watchtower's outer defenses, chaos erupted.
Automated cannons turned toward them, spitting hellfire, their barrels spewing molten blasts. The walls seemed to shift and twist, turning into jagged spikes ready to impale them.
"What do you call this? Hallway of doom?"
Michael asked, the environmental shield around him, reforming into a bulkier streamlined body armor, blocking the attacks.
Shazam roared, unleashing a bolt of lightning that cleaved through a wave of the fire.
Hellfire spewed out from the debris, creating an unholy mix of metal and flame golems. With swords, and heavy weapons.
"Shazam! You and I hold the line. Michael, go for Bruce!"
Wonder Woman ordered, using her Laso to bat away the golems.
Michael nodded, cutting down the hallway with a truck construct bowling away opposition.
"Ring, directions to the Zetabeam Control room! Now!"
A detailed map of the structure appeared in a HUD.
His eyes narrowed as he spotted a narrow corridor leading toward the heart of the Watchtower.
He took off.
The heat intensified as he delved deeper, the flames licking at his suit.
The Ghost Riders bcorruption was everywhere, infecting the station, twisting it into Batman's personal HellRide.
The Zetabeam control room loomed ahead, and Michael felt the pull of something darker and familiar.
He wasn't just about to face Batman. He was about to face the full force of the Ghost Rider. And that terrified him.
(Ring charge: 78%-100%)
A derisive chortle escaped him.
"Nice to know my fear has uses."
As if expecting him, the door to the control room slid open with a groan, revealing a sight that made Michael's breath catch.
Batman stood before the massive array of Zetabeam projectors, his entire body crackling with the fire of vengeance.
His armor had fused with the Ghost Rider's infernal power, creating a grotesque, flaming version of the Bat-suit.
His cape flickered with embers, and his head had turned into a terrifying demonic skull, burning with red flames.
As he turned around, Michael's breathed hitched. Batman's eyes- once sharp and calculating—were now pits of glowing hatred.
"YOU CAME." Batman growled with a deep rumble, his voice laced with contempt and fire. "GOOD. BECAUSE I NOW UNDERSTAND WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE."
Michael squared his shoulders, his Yellow Lantern ring glowing brighter as he stepped forward. "You're wrong, Bruce. What you're planning isn't justice, nor vengeance. It's destruction."
Bruce seethed, flames dancing along his gauntlets. "JUSTICE? VENGEANCE? YOU'RE STILL CLINGING TO THOSE LIES? THIS WORLD IS ROTTEN, MICHAEL. SIN RUNS THROUGH EVERY SINGLE PERSON, AND UNTIL THAT'S ERADICATED, THERE CAN BE NO PEACE. NO TRUE JUSTICE."
Michael shook his head, feeling the weight of Batman's words, but refusing to give in. It would be so easy to. "YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT GENOCIDE, BRUCE. YOU'VE LET THE GHOST RIDER TWIST YOU INTO SOMETHING WORSE THAN THE VILLAINS YOU FIGHT."
Batman's face contorted in anger, the flames around him flaring higher. "YOU THINK I'M TWISTED? YOU THINK I HAVEN'T SEEN WHAT HUMANITY IS CAPABLE OF? YOU SAID IT YOURSELF! WE FIGHT DAY AFTER DAY, BUT THE SAME EVIL ALWAYS COMES BACK. THE JOKER, LEX, VANDAL SAVAGE. HOW MANY MORE PEOPLE HAVE TO SUFFER BEFORE WE END THIS?"
Michael's fists clenched. "I want the Joker gone as much as you do. But this—this is wrong. You're not punishing the guilty anymore, Bruce. You're going after everyone."
Batman stepped closer, the heat of his presence overwhelming. "YOU WANT TO BE FREE OF VENGEANCE? SO DO I. BUT THE ONLY WAY TO DO THAT IS TO ERASE SIN. ERASE THE PEOPLE WHO CAUSE IT. FOR MY PARENTS, FOR YOUR WIFE AND DAUGHTER."
For a moment, Michael hesitated. He'd spent so long consumed by his own need for vengeance.
But something inside him, something that had survived all his pain, told him this wasn't the way. He wasn't noble like Bruce. But he wasn't a murdering psycho either.
"No," Michael said quietly, his voice firm. "I won't allow it. My fight was never with humanity, Bruce. It's with the people who choose to hurt others. There's a difference."
Batman's eyes flared with rage. "YOU'RE A FOOL."
In an instant, Batman attacked. Hellfire chains erupted from his arms, lashing toward Michael like living serpents.
Michael barely had time to react, raising a construct shield with his ring. The chains slammed into it with a deafening crash, the force sending him skidding backward.
"FEAR WON'T SAVE YOU, MICHAEL," Batman snarled, stepping forward. "THE RIDER WHISPERS ABOUT YOU. YOU'RE JUST AS MUCH A SLAVE TO YOUR EMOTIONS AS I AM."
Michael's ring glowed brighter, his construct shifting into a massive, glowing blade. "Maybe. But at least the leash on me is longer than yours. Give me back the Rider. You can't control it, Bruce."
The blade clashed with Batman's chains, sparks and fire filling the air as their powers collided.
Batman's strikes were relentless, fueled by the raw hatred and vengeance of the Ghost Rider. Each hit shook the ground beneath them, flames licking at the walls of the control room.
Michael was reminded of their first fight. How he had dominated. Things were different now.
But still he fought back, his fear turning into strength. The ring pulsed with power as he summoned new constructs—walls of fear energy, massive fists, and barriers to hold Batman at bay.
The room trembled under the force of their battle, the very air rippling with the intensity of their clash.
"You're not thinking straight, Bruce!" Michael shouted, ducking under another fiery chain and slashing back with his fear blade. "You will lose yourself!"
Batman roared, his voice echoing with the Ghost Rider's fury. "YOU THINK I'VE LOST MYSELF? I'VE *FOUND* THE TRUTH! HUMANITY *IS* THE DISEASE!"
Michael's ring flickered for a moment, and Bruce took the opening, slamming him against the wall with a chain whip.
Michael cried out as the flames melted through the armor, searing his skin.
"I know what it's like to be consumed by the Rider's need to punish," Michael said, gritting his teeth through the pain. "But I also know it doesn't have to be this way. You can still stop this."
Batman's eyes burned with rage, his chains tightening around Michael's throat. "YOU JUST DON'T GET IT, MICHAEL. THERE'S NO GOING BACK. ONCE YOU SEE THE TRUTH, YOU CAN'T UNSEE IT."
Michael gasped for air, his vision blurring. But in that moment, something inside him shifted, sparking an ember.
His fear—his fear of failing, of losing control met with his need for vengeance, which stoked the remnants of the Rider's hellfire within his soul.
Yellow light and blue fire combined with him as the focus of the reaction.
With a burst of heat, his ring flared to life, the yellow light and blue flames fusing into a new energy that blasted through Bruce's chains and sent him flying back.
Michael stumbled to his feet, his eyes blazing with confusion. His body was cloaked in two different auras. Yellow and blue. The left side of his face was a burning skull, the right was normal flesh.
Like a mix of the rider and a yellow lantern. But the weirdest thing was his ring. Which was flashing a bright green.
"You're right, Bruce," Michael stated, his voice steady. "There is no going back. But I'm not like you. I won't let fear or vengeance control me. I control them."
Blinding light erupted from his position. And Michael hovered in his new form.
A Green Lantern.
Batman snarled, rising to his feet, his flames growing ever stronger. "THEN YOU'VE ALREADY LOST."