15686/On Kryptonian Justice

On Kryptonian Justice
Date of Scene:	23 August 2023
Location:	Kryptonian Scoutship, Somewhere over the USA
Synopsis:	Superwoman and Batman meet and she patches him up with fanceh alien technologee, then gives him a ride home.
Cast of Characters:	Alura In-Ze, Bruce Wayne

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Alura In-Ze has posed:
Batman spins one that one wing until he slams into one of the few cars that Grodd had not hurled at him. The teleportation discs spin and disappear. The villains are gone. Alura frowns. In many respects they lost today even as the DEO are racing to the scene. They'll handle parasite, she's sure of it.

The heroes are licking their wounds except most of those wounded will heal up on their own. Even Monet, who probably needed to get punched in to a building so she can learn the hard way not to pick a fight with someone out of her league.

But Batman? He's human. She knows very little about him besides what Kal-El told her. Very few people hold Clark's trust quite like that man. The nanite armor peels back the face mask as she whisks across the street to the crumpled car upon which the billionaire vigilante rests.

Her x-ray vision lets her look at his wounds. They seem pretty bad by her estimation of how human bodies are meant to go. There also seems to be years worth of damage accumulated. "Hold still Batman. I've got you," she says in a quiet voice. No one needs to see Batman limping away from the scene. They already saw his fancy batjet crash in to Lex Tower. She scoops him up in her arms and rises up in to the air.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
In a different circumstance, Batman would have likely argued away the assistance. He knew _of_ Superwoman, but did not _know_ Superwoman. But he did know that Clark trusted her, and so he did not thoroughly fight her off as she lifted him. Other than to groan in pain, light flashing across his eyes as he tried to move even the slightest bit, finding his ribs entirely too painful.

He does not give voice to his pain, or to anything else, simply looking around for a moment to confirm that they had at least seemingly foiled their intent for the day.

Safe with that knowledge, he does the only reasonable thing.

He blacks out.

Alura In-Ze has posed:
Alura takes the man up up and away. That nanite suit of armor didn't come from no where. She summoned her Kryptonian scout ship. It's seen better days on the outside and the inside. Considering this was the ship that her twin sister Astra used to travel back in time with. The time engine was summarily destroyed by Alura the moment they made it back to their own timeline.

Kryptonian standards for 'seen better days' is pretty different to Human though. It still looks fancy, crystal like, and utterly futuristically alien. When Batman comes to he's laying on a tablet made of transparent crystal. Lights dance back and forth over his body, primarily focused on his ribs which no doubt still hurt.

Her armor is gone, her cape is off, but his armor is still on. She saw no reason to remove that shell from around him. Not the least of which is she doesn't know how to without breaking it.

The walls of the room are covered in biometric readings, a map of Bruce's body and sundry injuries that have healed over as well as his current most inconvenient ones. The writing is all in Kryptonian but the graphs are shaped similarly enough to suggest what they all represent. Certainly that one over there which is monitoring his heart.

One of the walls must have given the game away, "You're awake." By human standards she does not look like a middle aged mother with a daughter who had lost her world. Aging, genetic engineering, disease eradication. Krypton had mastered biology. Yet she carries herself like the adult she is. "That was some flying you did today Batman."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"Wish the landing was better," murmurs the Dark Knight as he works to try to sit up. Not used to waking up in unusual places, he was at least somewhat at ease by recognizing the technology as similar to some of what Clark has shown him at the Fortress. It avoids the immediate panic that might otherwise set in.

The fact that he feels better than he has in ages may also have something to do with it.

"I think, going forward, I shall stick to rooftops, and let you and your ... " He pauses, not entirely sure the relationship with Clark. "Family do the flying." He tests out his legs, and then twists his torso a bit to get a sense of his ribs.

Alura In-Ze has posed:
Alura double takes when he starts to sit up. She places a hand to his shoulder and gently guides him back down. "Don't get up yet. It's not done. I've never seen a body that's taken so much abuse before. I can't fix it all but there's plenty of things here that that the automated systems can improve greatly for you."

Alura's no doctor - she's a scientist - but it doesn't take a scientist to press the 'fix it' button. "You can thank Kal-El for this. He's the one who redesigned the medical systems for human anatomy." And yet, this is the first time its probably been used for that purpose.

"Please forgive me. I felt given the threat that revealed itself today we could probably avoid having you broken for months on end healing." She smiles down at him. "I'm Alura In-Ze. Family is correct. Travel through space, time suspension, phantom zone and the like. He's my nephew. Before I made it to Earth I only had memories of him as a baby."

She takes the pressure off his shoulder hoping he'll stay down for now. "Those criminals. I tried to get a reading on their teleportation system before they fled. Unfortunately I was too slow to track them. I'm not even sure what kind of technology that was - it really didn't seem fitting with any of the other technology I've seen on Earth so far."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Another time, another place, another person, and there is no way that Bruce lays back down. But this time, he does.

"Very thoughtful. I'll say something at our next board meeting." He does not ask where Clark was when some of his toughest foes spilled out into Metropolis. Certainly, he had his own things to deal with it. Batman couldn't be everywhere in Gotham all at once. It just felt that way.

"A pleasure to meet you, Alura." He chuckles for a moment. "He is quite more than a baby now."

He remains laying down for the moment, listening to her. "It was magic." He pauses. "I realize that magic is just technology that is not understood, generally, but there are some things that defy all laws of physics, and I have seen enough to believe in otherworldly influences. That is what was creating that portal, and hiding the other villains." He looks to Alura. "Cl--" He pauses. "Kal-El has told me that magic is one of your few weaknesses."

Alura In-Ze has posed:
Alura turns her back from him as he stays put. Her hands motion over the walls, moving some of the glyphs around. Even if Bruce had learnt Kryptonian most of these words are so unique to medicine they'd never have been in a regular discussion.

"That he is. He's everything and more his parents could have ever wanted," Alura is a little more coy about the struggles of his dual life. Of being Superman. She's starting to understand all the sacrifices he's made for this world.

"I like your explanation of magic. From my understanding of Earth sciences, much of what I could do would probably look like magic too. The fundamental ..." she pauses and then says a strange world in Kryptonian, "... of the universe is not at all understood by Humanity yet. Though, the edges of your sciences are starting to recognise there's a lot missing from the bigger picture."

She turns back around to him, "I assume magic is that next level beyond my own understanding. The rules of reality themselves are capable of being changed by an individual. That is a frightening capability and Earth seems to have a lot of people who fall in to that category."

She chuckles a moment though and folds her arms. "Forgive me - I hear a lot about weaknesses from my extended family. But I'd say magic is a weakness for just about everyone." A cheeky little smile graces her face. An adult version of a gesture seen on Supergirl's face plenty of times.

"You're used to calling him Clark?," she asks casually. "He considers you one of his most trusted allies yet you two seem to keep each other at arms length. I understand his reasons but not yours."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Bruce does not attempt to follow along with the alien displays. It had been an idle curiosity, once, discerning some of the Kryptonian language, but it was not something of much utility, and he lacked too much time for idle hobbies.

"That is likely it. Why do we have so many practitioners of magic?" Bruce sighs for a moment. "It was once explained to me, by a plant of all things, that there exists certain lines of power and a nexus of the universe, and by cosmic coincidence they converged here on the planet Earth." He shrugs. "While I am not sure I believe all of that, it certainly would give some credence to why there are so many that can tap into that here, compared to other planets throughout the universe."

Bruce smirks a bit in response to Alura's comment. "I was not saying you are any more susceptible to it, merely that it is one of the few weaknesses that you have. Just because it is shared by humanity as well does not mean it is any less a weakness."

The last seeming question evokes another shrug from Bruce. "He introduced himself to me as Clark, and has never asked me to call him Kal-El." He says it matter of factly, as if Alura were reading too much into it and the question itself drew offense of a kind.

Alura In-Ze has posed:
"I find what Ka.. Clark has done here on this planet to be remarkable. He grew up with little more than holographic tuition yet he learnt Kryptonian language, technology, sciences, all the while aiding the people." Alura smiles whimsically again.

"I wish I could say all of my endeavours had been so successful. This isn't the first time I've tried my hand at bringing justice to those without a voice." The fancy lights turn off. Bruce's body has a life time of injuries to contend with but much of the most recent and perhaps ongoing pains are simply gone.

"Before the destruction of Krypton, Dru-Zod lead a rebellion against the council for keeping secrets from the people. In a way he had a point. But his timing and methods left a lot to be desired. Because he had so much sway in the fighters guild, many of us from other guilds were recruited to stop his rebellion."

She points a finger to herself, "My team caught him. Owing entirely that I knew him before he lost his mind and began an insurrection. And what good was it in the end? pointless - our world was still doomed. I've learnt a lot since then. But what I saw today? ... the way Grodd spoke of war? ... it was like hearing Zod feverishly rant about the battle against the council all over again. There's no winners in a war like that."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"He is quite the remarkable man, and I am sure he would be so even on Krypton, as well." Bruce remains laying out on the table, not willing to risk Alura's scolding again. "He has the benefit of learning humility from two truly wonderful humans, and I think that humanity is what helps him appreciate the ... " He pauses. "..abilities he has here." He would not wish to insult Alura by his usual term - god-like powers.

"Often times, rebel leaders may lack restraint, but few rebellions are launched over nothing. While there are better ways to bring one's point across, they don't appear absent that."

He considers her comparison to Zod, and frowns. "They both likely believed ardently that they knew what was best for the rest of the world, and that imposing their will would make things better. There is a certain arrogance to that."

Alura In-Ze has posed:
"It's done," Alura states matter of factly as she listens to his assessment of Kal-El and then of rebellions. "Hm." Her hands fold across her chest and she offers up some more insights in to her past.

"When Krypton was destroyed, my husbands shielding system allowed Argo City to survive. We set course for a new star where we hoped to start a new. But the rebellion came with us."

There's conflicted emotions on her face as she elaborates. "I was part of Argo's new council. Determined not to repeat the mistakes of Krypton's council I enforced transparency. No secrets. I believe Zod was right in that the council kept too much hidden."

She sighs, "But the rebels kept wasting resources, destroying things. Every week we would have to report to the population on new rations and measures to keep energy use low, food consumption low. The trip was a long one and we wouldn't make it if we kept wasting resources like this."

Her lips tighten, "But they didn't listen. Paranoia? Habit of not believing? in the end the stormed our government and arrested us. It was heart breaking to be accused of deliberately harming our people. I was sentenced to the phantom zone."

Her eyes lower and she exhales slowly, offering with a motion of her hand to the door way, "Argo City did not make it. Clark and Kara found it a year and a half ago. My husband, Zor-El, he perished with it."

"I don't think Grodd has the best interests of the world at heart. The way he behaved and spoke told me volumes - that he wants to be the ruler no matter the cost. His way or the highway. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt but he made his intentions very clear."

"People like that - until they experience a true cost for their actions - they never stop. They just keep escalating until eventually everything breaks. As if somehow from the ruins something better can be born. True progress is built by correcting the mistakes of the past, not shattering it in to a million pieces."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Bruce listens as Alura tells the story of Argo City. His face is generally impassive, but there is enough of a down turn of a frown to vaguely resemble human as she speaks of the loss of the city. And her husband. "I am sorry to hear it," he says in a voice not accustomed to expressing regret or empathy. But he manages it just the same.

"I don't suggest Grodd has anything other than ego in mind when he wants to rule. And certainly, we wouldn't benefit from it. But that is what allows him to cling the fanaticism, and unfortunately, there are some that would follow along. He has himself something of an army it seems, although how many of them are joining of free will or not is another question."

Alura In-Ze has posed:
"Thank you Batman." Alura takes a breath and walks out of the medical room and back on to the bridge. The spacious area has several seats and consoles as well as a large window looking out over the ocean and blue skies. Off in the distance is a 747 flying east to west.

"It might seem like an offer too good to be true and perhaps some of his allies will quit when they realise the kind of resistance they face to his schemes. But right now they likely think he's a tactical genius, pulling one over on us like that."

She sets herself down on the captains chair and the crystals on the arm rest light up in several colours. "Not you though," she says recognising his unique insights in to the psyche of Grodd and Thawne. "I don't know you well but Clark trusts you and for now that's good enough for me. Consider me available if you need me."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Sliding from the table, Batman makes his way over to follow Alura towards the bridge. "I suspect that many of them are along for the ride, expecting the inevitable betrayal. Or total failure of the plan. But they will take what they can, and then jump off the ship before it sinks." He moves over to stand facing her, nodding in agreement. "I have spent my entire life studying the criminal mind. Rarely do they fool me."

He nods at the mention of Clark. "He is one of the few people I trust, as well. You seem worthy, too."

Alura In-Ze has posed:
Alura chuckles, "I try. But I've had a life time already to learn how things go wrong. I'm a scientist thrust in to a new reality where I have impossible powers and a family that uses them to help people. It's hard not to get swept up in that optimism."

"I appreciate the confidence and ... well hopefully I live up to it." Her hand rises and a holographic globe of Earth appears. "Where can I set you down Batman?"

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"Someone has to have optimism to counteract my cynicism," says Batman, a trace of a smile on his face. "If a scientist can be optimistic, perhaps there is hope for us yet."

He nods. "I am sure that you will. Your family always has." He reaches up with a finger to point at the globe. "Gotham. Thank you."

Alura In-Ze has posed:
Alura touches the hologram where Batman points and nods her head. "We're cloaked," she adds as he indicates where to go. The vision outside the ship shifts as it turns and off in the distance are two cities. One with gleaming high rises and the other seemingly catching the weather and shielding the rest of the country from it.

Given she launched nanite ablative Kryptonian armor to defend against the Kryptonite from somewhere it makes sense the ship wasn't that far away to do it. With no discernible feeling of motion beyond what is on display the ship races toward the twin cities and then veers to the right.

It's not raining, just windy. Gotham never catches a break when it comes to the weather. The gothic architecture is fascinating to behold. Alura has never been to the city before and her neck cranes taking it in. "Wow.."

She finds an open space at what at first seems to be a park to her but it becomes obvious rather quickly it's a cemetery. The Kryptonian ship comes to rest and she rises from the chair. "This way for those disembarking from Krypton Air."

A cheeky little smile she heads to the back of the ship. The wall parts itself opening up to the quiet cemetery. A doorway of light is the only thing that makes it clear there's even a spaceship there. She offers her hand to the dark knight.

"I'm glad to have met you. It gives me faith knowing someone like you has Superman's back."

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"Nice tech," murmurs Batman as he watches her maneuver the ship into the city. He has certainly seen advanced technology before, but most of what he has seen of Kryptonian technology was the more basic type that Clark had. Nothing nearly this substantial.

As Gotham comes into focus, he breathes a soft sigh. As murky as it was, it was home and what he had dedicated his life to. As they settle at the cemetery, he dips his head in appreciation. "Thank you. It was a lovely flight."

As the cemetery comes into view with the door opening, Batman nods, taking her hand and giving it a shake. "He's always had mine." A pause. "And I will have yours, too, if I can."

Alura In-Ze has posed:
Alura smiles to the man. Mask in place, she didn't even pry. The conversation of secret identities was given to her very soon after she arrived on Earth. She figures he'll tell her when he's ready. If it's ever relevant. For now, this is the man she has met - Batman.

With a step back, the doorway closes. The only proof that the ship was there at all is the flattened grass from the ship - yet it starts to stand back up now that the ship is gone because it never actually 'landed' - merely hovered just off the ground to avoid damaging anything.

Of all the people to see what Kryptonian technology is really like, she figured Batman was a safe one. He needed the aid regardless. So long as she can avoid exposing it too much to the world. She settles back in to the captains seat and sets course for the starport. It's almost time to found New Krypton.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Instantly feeling more comfortable the moment his boots are on the ground, Gotham ground at that, Batman releases a breath. He turns back towards the woman in the doorway of the air, and offers a wave. She is very much like he would imagine Clark's aunt to be, so much like him and yet something inexplicably alien about how she perceives things.

As much as she is as good and noble as can be expected, the stark contrast between her and Clark makes it clear just how much of Clark's humanity is learned, and not ingrained.

And how much of a debt the world owns Jonathan and Martha Kent.

He watches the portal close, and then presumes the ship floats away, before he turns and heads towards the street, sending a remote signal to bring the Batmobile here. It would be a long walk home.