Chapter Eighteen

"Oh, come on Dad this place is awesome! Is that a T-Rex?!" As he watched his daughter run towards the displays excitedly, he couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face. Although she looked so much like his Raven, she had an almost completely different personality than her mother.

There certainly was a difference in the way she was raised. While Raven was raised knowing she was the key to her father's rise, Angela was brought up with two loving and attentive parents. If only her mother was still...

Shaking his head, he couldn't think like that. He would rescue his father and then Bruce will help him find her. That is how it would go. If he lost faith now, then she would be forfeited to him permanently and he knew he wouldn't be able to live without her.

Turning his focus to the pair in front of him again, Dick stated, "I know this is a lot to take in, but we need to get our heads in the game. Bruce has been abducted. What information do you got for me kid?"

Frowning, Terry mentally shook himself, this guy 'Dick' was right. Wayne was still missing and regardless of whether or not the old man was his biological father, he still had to be saved. It had already been more than twelve hours, whatever reason the league of shadows had for taking the old man Terry knew that it wasn't good.

"Wait? Grampa Bruce was kidnapped?!" A worried expression crossed the pale girl's face as she ran/glided towards Dick quickly. The entire process shocked Terry 'This little girl could actually fly?!'

Placing a steady hand on top of her head, Dick looked down at his daughter with patience, then replied, "Shhhh, honey if they keep getting interrupted, we won't ever learn what happened that day."

Sighing, Terry met Diana's blue eyes which were so much like his own, he hadn't really ever noticed that little detail before today. Conveying the message that Terry could trust the pair, he relayed what he found to them. Dick was pretty sharp himself, halfway through the explanation he was already on the same wavelength. He even had the precise location of Infinity Island. Terry quickly added this information in his suit's records, not knowing when it would come in handy again.

"We should call Superman too," Diana said making the room go silent. She had apparently forgotten to inform everyone about this little tidbit earlier.

"He's back?!" Dick and Terry shouted slightly overlapping each other's voices.

She just sheepishly smiled at them in return.

---

"He was abducted when he came to see me?" Clark asked seemingly confused.

"Yes, I was there and couldn't stop it. These people are not your average assassins. They are stronger and more coordinated than most foes I've dealt with in the past. We could really use the backup."

There was a reason Clark hadn't donned the cape and tights as his alter-ego in the month he had returned to Earth. He had been so tired, not physically but emotionally. Finding Kara had helped, she was a small light in his otherwise dark world but she was just a kid. Although she was his family, Kara didn't replace what he had lost and being back on Earth had too many memories.

"I can't," Clark said looking down at the steaming coffee in his hand.

Diana could feel the sadness radiating off the Man of Steel in waves, she was caught off guard on how much he had changed since she had known him all those years ago. She could relate a little, this long day had started to get to her too. Even though she was more god than Amazon at this point, Diana still felt the fatigue from losing Bruce to finding out she had a son. If she was any other woman she would have broken down a long time ago.

Suddenly a voice that came from outside of the video spoke, "Clark, you can't just leave them like this! They are in need of help, it's against everything you have ever stood for."

The blonde appeared on the screen showing a side view of her beautiful face looking at Clark pleadingly.

"Kara, you don't understand…" Clark started but was quickly interrupted by the girl's next words.

"You're Damn right I don't understand! Even if everything I've read about you wasn't true, that symbol you wore on your chest stood for more than just a family name. It is the Kryptonian word for hope. So, if you refuse, then it means that you are forsaking everything it means to be an El."

Turning towards the monitor the blonde met the light blue eyes of the beautiful woman on the screen and stated, "If you will have me, I'd like to help."

Diana was a little stunned by the blonde's statement, she really didn't want to say 'yes' even if her instincts were telling her to do just that. She also understood that this girl had similar powers to Superman. She might be less accustomed to those abilities but she would be a great help where they were going. But if Diana undermined Superman at this moment... It might be a bad move. If there were any more of those fighters like 'Lashina' that she had fought earlier she knew the team might need all the help they could get.

Thankfully the choice of refusing or approving the blonde's request was taken out of her hands by someone else in the room.

"Well, I'd be a fool to turn down your assistance a second time on the same day," Terry spoke directly behind her.

"Ah, Batman?" Kara said seeing Terry appear behind the beautiful black-haired woman from nowhere.

Kara hadn't expected to see the handsome boy so soon after being callously left behind that same night. The frustration was still niggling at her self-conscious even now, but the fact that he was 'sort of' asking for her help greatly alleviated that frustration a lot.

Diana knew Terry had met the other Kryptonian already, but did she notice a... flirtation? She couldn't help the teasing smile that graced her beautiful lips.

Since Kara had spoken of the symbol he wore, Clark had been silently thinking. He recalled a time when Lois would have given him a similar speech and once again, he found himself wishing to live up to that same expectation she always had of him.

"Okay, for old times' sake I'll join. But after this mission, I wish to be left alone." Clark relented.

"Alright, then if you guys are coming meet us at Bruce's mansion in an hour. We will need to prepare this will probably not come easy… Even for you. Wonder Woman out."

---

Infinity Island

In the center of a dark cave, a casket filled with a boiling green liquid was suspended in the air. Surrounding it was uncountable members of the League of Shadows and directly in the front patiently waiting was Talia al Ghul with a long piece of cloth clutched in her hands.

Moments past, when suddenly the groan of the casket's doors was pushed open and Ra's Al Ghul flung himself out of the green liquid. The instant Ra's in the body of Damian Wayne exited the casket, Talia wrapped a long green robe around his shoulders with the end the garment flowing around his ankles.

"The Lazarus Pit does you well. Still, I do not understand, why you need the other one?" A deep voice permeated the area sending shivers down the spines of the most hardened killers in the room.

Ra's looked up and gave a forced smile as a projection of Darkseid walked down the stairs coming face to him. "Ah, you see the body I reside in currently is a dearest relative," He said bitterly.

"Well, it is said that time is relative as well but my patience isn't," Darkseid glowered. "The speedster's life is dwindling. If we are going to set events into motion then we will need to be fully prepared."

"Yes, do not fret my grandson is a powerful warrior in his own right. He will be very useful in the coming war," Ra's said.

Chuckling at the very thought, Darkseid brought back his shoulders in a proud display of arrogance and stated, "I fear nothing," then continued his words in a deadly whisper. "So, be prepared or..."

Then the massive being was gone. He left nothing behind but his dark words ringing in their ears and a shiver running down everyone's spines.

"Get Wayne prepped for conversion. We will take care of this problem tonight. We do not need to give that warlord a reason to turn the tables on us." Ra's said allowing the frustration to seep into his voice.

"But Father, Bruce's body has only recently been restored. If you transfer now, we could lose you both," Talia's worry showed in her voice.

Letting out a pained breath Ra's turned to his only daughter. She was still beautiful, but he knew long before he took his grandson's body that she wouldn't stand the test of time. Even with the use of the Lazarus Pit, her body would soon fail her. She was already a shadow of the person she was forty years prior and soon she would be gone from this life as well.

There were not many that could show the same promise as he himself, except the detective and his progeny. It was a hard decision to take the boy's body, but Ra's didn't need someone to take over for him. He needed someone that could be him, but of course, the magic that would allow him to do such a thing as placing his consciousness into another's body required that person to be directly related to the user.

He had no choice to use the body of his grandson at the time, his daughter's mind wouldn't survive. Though if he was forced to do such a thing, he would still have easily done so. But now that he was inside his grandson's body the transfer to the boy's father was a simple process for the magic.

The fact that the process could kill both father and son wasn't much of an issue anymore, he could still preserve his own life by magic and technology, but he needed to act the part to keep his daughter's conscious clear.

"Worry not my child, it is but a simple process. The detective's mind has already become malleable with the use of the Lazarus Pit, he will not be able to resist the transfer. Besides, working with the warlord gives us little choice in the matter. If we delay too much, we will have a fight on our hands and for the moment we are the weaker. No, we will act tonight. Events will be set in motion going forward that will allow us to remold reality into my image. Once we achieve that... Darkseid will be just a stepping stone in our conquest of life as we know it.

A complex expression marred Talia's face as her father spoke. But before her father could take notice she replaced it with a more confident one instead.

---

Gotham City- Wayne Manor

The hour Diana had allowed for the Super's would arrive was filled with stocking up with supplies in the three vehicles capable of making the trip to the Caribbean the quickest. Everyone except Angela remained stoic, everyone else had something on their mind or was attempting to keep from thinking about. But Angela was brimming with questions, not to the point of being annoying but she had a quality that reminded Terry of his little brother during this time.

Terry would be the first to admit that his brother was less endearing though, but maybe that was because Angela was very attractive as well. But soon she did something that completely made him pause, "Umm, Angela why are you grabbing the Robin uniform?"

Raising an eyebrow, she cutely tilted her head and stated, "Well that is because I'm Robin. I have been for years where I come from. If we are going to rescue my grandfather, I will need the uniform."

"Wait… What?!" Terry said in shock at the revelation.

Chuckling at Terry's expression Dick chimed in, "Yeah the girl is a chip off the old block. A better gymnast than I probably was at her age the fact she takes after her mother with magic makes her a fierce competitor."

This, however, did nothing to remove the frozen expression from the young Batman's face.

"Better stop Dad, we just might break him." Angela's delighted words finally managed to make Terry move a little.

But within moments, Terry wasn't sure what expression he should wear when Diana spoke, "You know, Terry's no idler either. I'd say he could give Angela a run for her money on the gymnastics, and if he indeed shares my genes... well the average sorceress wouldn't be able to keep up." She paused to chuckle affectionately then continued, "That is, after a little training."

Luckily, Terry kept his mask on while he worked in the cave because he knew his cheeks were burning red with embarrassment. He couldn't believe it, 'Diana was actually bragging on him like he was her son? This day keeps getting weirder and weirder.'

"Oh yeah, I'd like to see that," Dick said sounding amused by the woman's words.

Walking away quickly, Terry stumbled over a box as he approaches one of the aircraft.

Angela's words echoed out after that, "Yeah he is a real twinkle toes, that one." making the trio burst into laughter at his expense once again.