32 Chapter - 30
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Chapter - 30: Hypocrites part - 2
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A tense atmosphere falls over the room. A muscle visibly twitches in Batman's jaw, and his eyes roll toward Superman.
"Thank you for bringing him," he says with the slightest undercurrent of irritation breaking through his dispassionate facade. "Please take a seat so we can get started."
Superman gave me one last long look that was clearly telling me not to do something stupid, before walking to the empty seat next to Batman. Leaving me all alone at the head of the table like a child at their parent-teacher conference.
It is ironic, because Superman and Wonder Woman were the closest things to relatives that I could have wished for. But that was not going to change in any way the plans I had in mind.
I respond to each of their looks evenly and with the arrogance of someone who knows exactly what will happen in the next five seconds at any given moment. Since only one of a million probable ways to proceed led to a total brawl, I certainly do not pretend to understand the concept of humility.
"There!" My voice applied to Ki resounds like thunder that, however, elicits no reaction from the assembled heroes. "I'm finally here. By the way, thank you very much for not leaving me in a dimensional hole, and by the way I'm really appreciating the straitjacket with the kryptonite. Nice touch."
"Does he always talk this much?" Aquaman's voice is low and booming, like waves rising in a tide to crash against the sands, appropriate for the King of the Oceans.
Many would have cowered at the annoyance of the Sea Lord. But I was very different from anything I had ever seen. Pride kicked in and I had the overwhelming urge to teach this jumping groundfish its place in the food chain, preferably with a violent show forming in my mind.
I couldn't help thinking that if I wanted to get under his skin, I should simply ignore the king's words, as if they were as insignificant as a light gust of wind would be much more effective.
Heroes... They can't stand not being the center of attention.
"You know," I continued, without any fear. "I honestly expected to be sent to another dimension. But I was still hoping for a few words of thanks from you more emblazoned heroes for helping to save the day from that calamity."
"Sit down," the Dark Knight asks from his chair without showing any fear on his face.
I could only show my uncovered canine teeth in a grimace of a smile. "And who will make me, you? No? I imagined so. Stay on your shadows and roofs, you are especially lucky to have great support by your side."
Wonder Woman's knuckles clenched into a white bone around the hilt of her sword. "He may not be able to do it, but we can."
"Stop!" It is a miracle that the table does not shatter in two under the force of Superman's clenched fist. "I didn't expect anything from him, but I expected from you that all people would behave with some decorum, Diana. There will be no fighting here."
"Superman is right," Batman finally says after the tension subsides. "No more fighting. There's been enough of that. Typhon, sit down."
In the end, after a few seconds of reflection, I do so without reacting in a superficial way, mainly because of the Man of Steel's glare: It was not the right time to confront him, there would be the right time very soon.
"J'onn," says the Man of Steel. "Begin, please."
Martian Manhunter turns toward me. "Typhon... No last name." He pronounces my name as if it were that of a convicted felon. "The Justice League has been deliberating for a significant period of time on the issue of... detention. The question for me is one. Have you not only been responsible for the actions of Washington DC? Which are not limited to the murders caused by my struggle and many associates? Please answer truthfully. This can determine our final decision."
"Phew," whistles Green Arrow from where he is reclining in his chair. "Maybe we should just do that booze-filled evening we agreed to." His voice thins under the wave of glares falling over him. "Sorry about a serious topic, I'll shut up now."
Maybe this should have been considered a difficult moment in this new life of mine, when I came to fully grasp the seriousness of my actions and begin the long and difficult path to their forgiveness or some such bullshit
I can feel the weight of every pair of eyes on me, searching, examining, judging. The warning buzzes in the back of my mind that lying would get me nowhere here or even telling the truth.
But none of that mattered to me. All I can think about is why the fuck everybody in here cares so much about some simple deaths that even they during their battles had moments when they involved poor innocents. 'They didn't want to lose their social positions'
I turned to the bat in front of me and I could sense the desire to almost physically feel how much he wanted to jump up on the table and pound the truth out of me. I smile and meet his gaze head-on.
"It was self-defense," I said simply without arguing more than necessary. Silence greets me statement. I swear my hear crickets somewhere in the background.
"Crush," Manhunter finally says. "We saw her report. And even though you were wearing a straitjacket, it is also true that you were carrying Dr. Hamilton who was unconscious at the time. And, more importantly, still missing. You were also accompanied by two dangerous mercenaries, and to make matters worse, you were considered a great threat."
"At least the guy is honest, for a mass murderer I mean!" Green Arrow hastily adds.
Batman leans forward in his chair, spreading his fingers across the table. "And you have no remorse for your actions?"
"Remorse implies that I did something wrong, doesn't it?" I asked rhetorically. "During your battles, I don't think you worried so much about the people who might be involved."
"So also all the others who died crushed in their homes? All three hundred of them?"
"Throwing out a number won't change my mind."
"We're not trying to change your mind," Hawkman says for the first time. "You clearly have no regrets. All this is now a useless exercise in rudimentary psychology."
Huh, the rooster talks more sense.
"I don't think it would end well if someone got inside my head, true I can assure you. By the way, I'm told you have a granddaughter. I hope she is well and not affected by the battle?"
Manhunter looks at me with a look full of very dangerous implications for my health. "She's fine..."
"I'm very pleased..." I return my attention to Batman. "So what, Batman? You drag me in front of all your superhero friends because I did what you've always been too weak to do something like that?"
After all my time with Rose I found I was good at antagonizing people during an argument, it seemed to be one of my natural talents, and it applies even now when Batman's mouth turns into a snarl under the hood.
"Refusing to kill is not a weakness."
"No," I chuckle merrily. "It's just a lack of conviction and tenacity."
Now that I have decent control over my emotions. I finally felt complete, as if I had been a completely different being before and now had the full support of my body and mind.
"And what conviction is that?" he asks. "That the only answer is permanent? Playing God with someone's life and acting as judge, jury and executioner?"
"Isn't that what you are doing right now?" I ask quietly. "Are you standing on your moral high ground? If you can't see the hypocrisy in those words when you sit next to the Amazons and Thanagarians, then not even God himself could convince you that some people are beyond redemption.
Wonder Woman turns her eyes away from your inquiring gaze, though it is not out of shame. The Thanagarian couple and Aquaman at least do not.
Fucking hypocrites!
"It's not for you to decide," Batman says through gritted teeth.
When I turn to look at Batman, I could sense his emotions because of my Ki and especially because of Doomsday's abilities. The golden walls flake at the seams turning to grimy gray bricks and a narrow rain-stained alley.
The light changes from bright and warm to a flickering dull fluorescent. And Batman, the Dark Knight of Gotham turns into a little boy with his parents' blood stained on his shirt.
"I didn't decide it, but as the saying goes, don't wake a sleeping dog unless you're prepared to suffer the consequences. And when I am attacked I respond with overwhelming force."
But before either of them can speak again, another intervenes, and his words are not full of reproachment or condescension like so many others. "Sometimes with such great power you have to make decisions that put you on the spot and do not favor you during your lifetime," Superman says with unwavering sad eyes and a voice steeped in long-standing pain.
"And other times, to protect innocent life, you have to do something that can never be taken back, something that will eat at you for years afterward and leave you thinking about what you could have done differently, and you will always come back to the conclusion that what you did was the only solution, and it will still leave you sick in your skin.
"Many around this table have taken a life. But it should never be enjoyed, never expected. Never. Killing is only the answer for people without recourse! I can't speak for Batman or anyone else, but the worst thing you did that day, Typhon, was that you chose to let yourself go, even though you knew you didn't need to in order to decree your victory in battle."
When you watch Superman, the Man of Steel is reduced to an ordinary man overwhelmed with regret, for a simple choice he still could not accept.
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A/N: Guys, remember to leave a review if you like the story. Your comments and interactions help motivate me so please write what you thought about the chapter in the comments. I am open to suggestions to help improve my fics.
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Marvel: The Spider in the Infinite Sea of Possibilities.
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