"Plan B? But everyone thinks you're safer here."
Zatanna looked at Bruce in surprise. Even after being left badly injured by Adrian, she had not expected him to already be planning his next move.
"I know," Batman said, gripping the edge of his chair. "Everyone thinks that, even Alfred."
His voice remained hoarse, weakened by injury, but the determination beneath it was impossible to miss.
"But I don't."
Beneath the black cowl, Bruce's expression remained unwavering.
"I don't care how fragile my body is right now. I only know one thing, I can still stop Adrian."
His tone sharpened.
"At ACE Chemicals, Adrian killed the Joker, but he was also infected by the Joker toxin. Maybe the effects haven't fully surfaced yet, but the madness is already inside him. That's the most dangerous part."
Batman's eyes darkened.
"You never know when it'll erupt."
Zatanna folded her arms, listening carefully.
"Then explain something to me," she said. "Before, you still wanted to save Adrian. Now you're talking about killing him. What changed?"
"My goal hasn't changed," Batman replied immediately. "I've always wanted to stop things from getting worse."
He leaned back slightly, suppressing the pain in his chest.
"But there comes a point where some things can't be undone. When that happens, someone has to make the hard decision."
Bruce looked directly at her.
"Listen to me, Zatanna."
He paused briefly to catch his breath.
"Adrian is infected with the Joker toxin. I'll do everything I can to stop him."
His voice lowered.
"And if I succeed, I need you to do something."
Zatanna frowned.
"What?"
Bruce answered without hesitation.
"Kill me."
Her eyes widened.
"What?! Bruce, have you completely lost your mind?"
"I know exactly what I'm saying."
Batman remained composed, as though he had already accepted the possibility.
"If I kill Adrian, there's a strong chance I'll become infected too."
His expression turned grim.
"Adrian told me what happens if the Joker toxin takes hold of me."
For the briefest moment, hesitation crossed Bruce's face.
"That future…"
His jaw tightened.
"It would be hell."
He remembered Adrian's warning vividly.
If infected, he would manipulate and destroy the people closest to him. Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Barbara Gordon, the people most likely to notice the change first.
Even Damian.
Though Bruce still found the idea strange, considering he still had no clear explanation for suddenly having a son in Adrian's vision.
The infected version of himself would twist Damian into something monstrous, turning children exposed to the toxin into cruel reflections of Robin.
Worse still, he would use every contingency plan he had ever created to systematically destroy the Justice League.
Superman would not be spared.
Bruce would exploit Kryptonite, strategy, and fear to dismantle Clark's entire family.
Even Alfred would suffer.
Not death.
Something far worse.
A slow, deliberate corruption.
"You actually believe him?" Zatanna asked quietly.
"Yes."
Bruce answered without hesitation.
"We've already seen enough proof."
He looked toward the window.
"Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Kara all came from the future. They confirmed Adrian has some form of precognition."
His voice remained steady.
"The future has changed, but I still trust what he warned me about."
Zatanna stepped closer.
"Bruce…"
She gently placed a hand over his.
"You're afraid of yourself."
Batman gave a faint, humorless smile.
"Maybe."
Her voice softened.
"You need to have more faith in yourself."
"That's exactly why I made this decision."
Bruce slowly looked down at his hands.
"I understand what the Joker toxin does to people."
His expression darkened.
"And I know myself."
A heavy silence settled in the room.
"I've never been someone shaped by light," he continued quietly.
"After falling into that cave, part of me was built from darkness."
He looked toward the shadows stretching across the Tower of Fate.
"In Gotham, I use fear against criminals. Violence. Intimidation."
His voice carried quiet bitterness.
"I'm a vigilante, but I'm not innocent."
Bruce exhaled slowly.
"Adrian was right about one thing. I could fight crime in Gotham for another twenty years and the city still wouldn't truly change."
His tone lowered.
"When you spend your life in darkness, eventually part of it settles inside you."
Zatanna shook her head immediately.
"You're not a criminal, Bruce."
"Maybe not."
He paused.
"Or maybe I'm closer than I'd like to admit."
Bruce looked directly at her.
"But because I understand myself, I understand what would happen if I lost control."
His voice hardened again.
"So if I succeed…"
He raised the piece of Kryptonite resting in his hand.
"You end me before the transformation begins."
Zatanna stayed silent for several seconds.
Then she met his gaze.
"You're certain?"
"I am."
Half an hour later.
"When the sky turns green, that's our signal."
Inside the Batcave, Barbara Gordon sat in front of the computer systems, speaking through a secure connection with Batman at the Tower of Fate.
"That's the message Guy sent us," she said while typing rapidly. "He said it'll be the best time to strike."
Multiple surveillance feeds flickered across the Batcomputer.
"I've already hacked into the Justice Society's systems," Barbara continued. "We'll be able to track their movements in real time."
Batman thought for a moment.
"Is everyone ready?"
"Yes."
Barbara glanced at the operation log.
"Alfred and I are in the Batcave. Black Canary is getting ready in Metropolis. Cyborg, Nightwing, and my dad's resistance group are positioned on the front lines."
She paused.
"Harley Quinn's there too."
Batman's expression immediately hardened.
"She shouldn't be."
His voice sharpened through the communicator.
"Oracle, Harley Quinn is still a criminal."
Barbara rolled her eyes.
"If you saw how much she's changed, you wouldn't be saying that."
Her fingers moved quickly across the keyboard.
"You're not here to judge people, Batman. You're here to make strategy."
Bruce remained silent for a moment before letting it go.
"What about Clark?"
Barbara hesitated.
"He doesn't want to fight."
Batman frowned.
"He's still standing on the sidelines?"
"The last battle outside Gotham City Hall affected him badly," Barbara said quietly. "I think he lost confidence."
"No."
Batman shook his head.
"Clark never lacked courage."
His expression turned thoughtful.
"What he lacks is the courage to fight himself."
Before he could continue, something outside suddenly changed.
The sky darkened.
At first, it looked like thick storm clouds gathering overhead.
Then the shadows spread unnaturally fast.
Daylight faded.
Darkness swallowed the horizon until the world looked as though night had fallen in the middle of the afternoon.
Barbara quickly switched the surveillance feed.
Her eyes widened.
"Oh my God…"
The darkness was not weather.
It was a planet.
Mogo.
The sentient Green Lantern planet had arrived, blocking out the sun itself.
The Green Lantern Corps had finally reached Earth.
"Oh, wow…"
High above the atmosphere, John Stewart stared toward the massive celestial body.
"They actually brought Mogo."
Hal Jordan's expression remained serious.
"And half the Green Lantern Corps."
Without another word, Hal accelerated forward at super speed.
John followed close behind.
"Hal! John!"
As the two approached the incoming Lantern forces, Guy Gardner waved at them casually.
His arms were crossed, looking far too relaxed for someone moments away from interstellar war.
"Only the two of you came to greet us?"
Before anyone could answer, a blur shot through space.
Guy smirked.
"Oh, look who's here."
Adrian.
Flying at terrifying speed, Adrian crossed the distance in an instant.
Guy immediately waved.
"Over here!"
A second later, Adrian stopped directly in front of them.
The tension between both sides was immediate.
Guy sighed.
"Okay," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Before this turns into a full-blown space war, let me try one last time."
He looked directly at Adrian.
"Help us stop Sinestro's Corps."
His tone grew more serious.
"Then accept judgment."
"The Earth keeps spinning, nobody dies, everybody wins."
Adrian's expression never changed.
"That's funny."
His voice remained cold.
"I was about to say the same thing."
"If you surrender, the result stays exactly the same."
Guy groaned.
He was frustrated.
Angry.
And honestly worried.
"Come on, man."
He gestured toward the massive Yellow Lantern Corps gathering nearby.
"Use your X-ray vision for a second and actually look at your allies."
His expression twisted.
"These are Sinestro's people. Fear is literally their entire thing."
Guy pointed accusingly.
"Half of them look like they bite people for fun."
He gestured dramatically toward the largest Yellow Lantern in sight.
"That giant one over there is Arkillo."
Guy shook his head.
"The guy practically looks like violence."
He crossed his arms.
"I'm serious, Adrian. These people are a problem."
Adrian remained unmoved.
"For now," he said evenly, "they're useful."
His eyes shifted toward the Lantern fleet.
"The enemy of my enemy."
"That only works temporarily," Guy snapped. "These guys are a disease waiting to spread."
He glanced briefly at Hal and John before stepping closer.
"You don't have to do this."
His voice lowered.
"I'm trying to help you."
Adrian's gaze remained steady.
"I don't need protection, Guy."
Guy finally looked exasperated.
"But we can protect you!"
There was frustration in his eyes.
But beneath it, something closer to desperation.
"Just say the word."
His voice grew louder.
"One word, Adrian."
"One word and we stop all this."
"No war. No bloodshed."
He hesitated.
"You'll agree, right?"
Hal shifted awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable.
The silence stretched.
Then Adrian finally spoke.
His expression never changing.
"Guy…"
He tilted his head slightly.
"Do you always make people this uncomfortable?"