Justice League: Batman's Missing

Last Conversation With Batman

A headache formed and made his head spin. He had just finished his shift in the Justice League tower and wanted to relax. Superman walked away from the glaring computers and into the dim hallway. A skeleton crew was working, so he didn't see anyone around. Before he passed the cafeteria, the sound of a screwdriver and a wrench caught his attention. Peeking around the door, he sees Batman messing with something significant and metallic.

The Kryptonian walks past Batman, knowing that the man is aware of his presence, as he makes his way to the coffee pot and grabs two mugs. Batman continues working as Superman walks up to him, setting the mug next to the man, "You know we have a workshop," He mutters, sipping the lukewarm coffee.

"I'm aware," Batman grunts, still working on the large piece of metal, "Coffee was in here." Superman leans back against his seat, "What are you working on?" Batman sets the screwdriver down and grabs the wrench, "Power booster for one of my cars." The man tightens the screw and pushes the booster to the side, grabbing the coffee next to him.

"You can just sleep," Superman said, slightly amused in his tired state. Batman grunted, "Busy." Superman hummed, "Clearly. Why are you working on it here? I thought you had some big cave somewhere."

"Who told you that?" Batman growls. Superman shifts in his seat and finds a better position. "Green Arrow told me that you knocked him out after a battle. He claims to have seen a dinosaur replica when he woke up there."

"He had a head injury."

"He said you knocked him out pretty quickly."

Batman sips the coffee, "What are you doing up here?" Superman studies Batman's face. Cowl or not, he could tell the man was tired, "I just finished my shift. Which reminds me, Aquaman said you were refusing to take your turn."

"I'm busy."

"You made a commitment," Superman frowns. "I can't do anything for you people this month." Batman grunts. "You people?" Surprised by the language, Superman repeats, "You're a part of this team too, you know."

"Hardly," Batman snorted, looking away from Superman's gaze.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Superman asked, slightly offended. He wasn't sure if Batman didn't want to commit or if he thought they didn't want him around. Either way, Superman believed that Batman was mistaken in whatever conclusion he'd drawn.

"I think you know," Batman said coyly, sipping his coffee. Superman set his cup down, feeling uncomfortable. "No, I don't."

"Well, I don't know if you know this, but I'm not really a people person."

"I noticed," Superman replied dryly. The man still avoided the Kryptonian's gaze, "And I've never worked with a team before." Superman looks at Batman in confusion, "What about that cop? Gordon?"

"That's different," Batman snapped, and his glare made it clear that the conversation was over, "The Justice League is very different from anything I've done in Gotham."

"Are you saying it's overwhelming?" Superman asked, but even to his own ears, it didn't sound right. Batman tightens his grip on the mug, "No, I'm trying to tell you that my own duties may no longer allow me to be an active member of this team."

"You're quitting?" Superman inquired, honestly surprised by this turn of events. He knew that Batman was having a hard time connecting with the other team members, but he'd never considered that the man might leave. His next thought was how smoothly things would be from this point on, which immediately made him feel sick.

"I am," Batman replied. "I'll be around for emergencies, but other than that, I am going to ask all of you not to contact me." He locks his eyes on Superman, eyes narrowed.

"Is this about work conflict?" He asked. If Batman was leaving because his Gotham duties were more important to him, then he wouldn't go out of his way to ask not to be contacted. He would want to keep an open line of communication even if it was just to keep up on League cases. Nothing about any of this was sitting well with Superman.

"Yes, it is," Batman told him, drained what was left of his coffee, gathered his things, and left. Superman sat in the chair for a moment, then silently followed Batman to the Zeta tubes. He watches Batman enter the tubes and looks at Superman for the last time before he leaves the tower. 

It would be only a few days later before Superman learned that no one in Gotham had seen any activity from the Batman. Even with Shadow Fox being there. There were even a bunch of daily news articles wondering why Batman wasn't responding to the kinds of crimes he was known to respond to. 

Superman used a League computer to access the Gotham police wire and heard quite a bit of chatter from the offices of Major Crimes to the offices in the 401 precinct looking for tips about the Batman's whereabouts. Apparently, the 401, which was located in Crime Alley, were usually the first responders to Batman's aftermath. They were used to seeing him nearly every night, but they hadn't seen him either. They had to turn to Shadow Fox sometimes for help, but Shadow Fox could only do so much.

Superman even tried Batman's League communicator, which he had not left behind, but there was no answer. He had an uncomfortable feeling that he was the last person Batman had spoken to before he'd vanished, and for some reason, that feeling drove him to begin looking for the missing vigilante.

"Where are you, Batman?" Superman whispers, staring at the computer.