Birthday III

It was a set-up. Tim wasn't here. Aaron could use his x-ray vision and he had made sure of that. Meaning, this was Batman's birthday gift. 

A trap.

"The Chosen One. Heir to Ra's al Ghul. Husband to Talia al Ghul. Lady Shiva's superior. The Penguin's real killer."

Aaron didn't speak. Batman continued.

"I sensed it on my birthday. A telepathic invasion. Mind control." Aaron noted that Batman was keeping his distance from him. "I resisted. I nearly failed. But there was a trick I picked up from some Tibetan monks. With it, I was able to send the command to the furthest corner of my mind."

So that was why the link was weak. It hadn't disappeared, Batman had forced the command to the basement of his mind, closed the door, and threw away the keys.

"And this?" Aaron's eyes flickered to the devices to the far side of him.

"Speed Force containment rigs." Batman stepped closed. "I don't know how you were able to gain the Speed Force, but I already analyzed your signature. It's eerily familiar to Barry's which means it's the type I'm most familiar with. With help from S.T.A.R Labs, I developed this device."

"Who have you told…?"

"No one. I couldn't risk it, after all, if you had already wormed your way into their minds. It's quite the scary ability. It took me weeks to figure out who exactly you had ensnared. Talia, Lady Shiva, Hadiyah, Julia Pennyworth, Elizabeth Kane…"

Aaron cursed in his head. He thought he had been careful. What gave him away?

Batman came closer.

"On top of that, someone gained backend access to my satellites. I didn't even notice until Cyborg told me. I had him do some maintenance and he said he found something strange. An unknown, untraceable user. Who could have possibly done that? The only way to gain access to my satellites is either through the BatComputer or being on it. Or…if someone hacked into it. Selina."

Again, Aaron didn't speak. He needed Batman to keep talking. Although motion was stolen from him, he could still tap into other things.

"I checked Selina's messages. I see you had your fun with her."

BAM!

A heavy metallic fist caused his head to jerk to the side and his lip to bleed.

"Selina has been with other men before but you…you controlled her."

BAM!

Another hook to the face. Stuck to his knees by the device, Aaron could do nothing except accept his punishment. A small purple bruise appeared on his cheek.

Aaron's neck rolled back and he glared up at him. The connection, the almighty command inside Bruce, he had to activate it or else–

CRACK!

Another punch, this time with greater strength. Enough to make him spit out blood. 

"This is the Hellbat Suit. You won't be getting into my mind with this. Martian Manhunter made sure of it."

The Hellbat Suit…he had heard of it. Everybody in the Bat Family talked about it, gushed about it. The strongest, most powerful suit in Batman's arsenal, forged with the help of the Justice League. Not just one or two members either. Everyone, from the Flash, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman, aided in its construction. Batman had worn on Apokolips to fight Darkseid and save Damian from the evil god's clutches.

And here Batman was, using it on him.

Despite the scarlet bat symbol on the armour's chest, despite knowing it was Batman, Aaron could not read or tap into Batman's mind. 

Aaron glowered. He glared up at the legendary vigilante. "So you're just going to beat me into a bloody pulp?"

POW!

"Until you can't move and I can safely lock you up," Batman answered.

As the reality of the situation sank in, frustration began to creep into his expression. Aaron attempted to contact someone, anyone through his telepathy, but found himself zapped and restrained by another electric power.

"Psionite. A rare crystal-like material that has inherent psychic-blocking properties. You can't call for backup."

Aaron grit his teeth. On his knees, hands barely holding up, every passing second was pain and suffering. As if he was pulling each muscle in his body, from his legs to his arms. A pain that spread wide and without mercy.

"So you really thought of everything."

CRACK!

"I'm Batman. Of course I did."

In a moment of desperation, Aaron reached out to the Speed Force, attempting to summon even a fraction of his former speed. But the emptiness echoed back at them, leaving him feeling isolated and abandoned.

Motion itself was gone to him. He could feel his muscles shift from pain to numbness. He was going to end up a statue.

'Fuck it. No holding back.'

His lips could still move. He could still utter magical spells.

"Te–"

BAM!

"You can use Zatanna's magic," Batman said. "You really think I'm going to let you do that."

His mind. Aaron could cast spells in his mind–

CRACK!

"I'm well aware of some magicians capable of using magic through their mind. While magic itself is impossible to negate…" Batman swung at him again, harder this time. Blood was gushing from his teeth. "There are other options: override the spell casting with pain."

BAM! CRACK! 

Punch, right hook, jab, cross, uppercut–

Pain. So much pain. Aaron could do nothing except receive the punishment. He was healing fast but Batman's punches were faster. He was holding back too. Here, right now, he could send his head off.

But Batman had a rule. A code that he could never, ever break.

No killing.

Through the pain, through the gradual loss of his body, he saw hope.

A light flickered from his grey eyes. Batman shifted back and attempted to slam him with a punch with all his weight.

Alas, he was too late.

The light glowed in his eyes and enveloped the two of them.

One second, they were in the BatCave. Next, they were on the moon.

Aaron disappeared and reappeared ten feet away. Instinctively, seeing the starry night of space, he held his breath. He quickly casted a spell in his head, 'Tel em htaerb ni ecaps.'

Aaron was short of breath regardless but now he could operate here. The vastness of space was ignored in favour of the armoured menace in front of him. The coldness was shrugged off as a powerful heat radiated from the Hellbat Suit.

"Magic." His voice growled and was thick with anger. Batman's Hellbat suit was almighty in physical sense. "You were able to cast your spell through the pain." 

"Ha…" Aaron wiped the blood off his chin. "Your armour has defences against magic, I'm sure, but not for spells on Zatanna's level."

The bulky Batman didn't respond but it didn't matter. The fact that Aaron was able to teleport to the moon meant he was correct. He had measures against defences, sure, built by Aqauaman and Wonder Woman. However, those measures fell against the likes of Zatanna, the Spectre, Doctor Fate, and the Phantom Stranger. Those whose entire skill set relied on magic.

Aaron could see Batman shift. He was prepared to strike.

Behind him, his wings expanded. 

In less than a nanosecond, Batman closed the distance between them. Arms clashed. The ground below them cracked. Block, dodge, duck. Aaron watched Batman's movements carefully, burning his attacks into his mind and saving them for later.

The Speed Force was returning to him. Aaron was growing faster and faster.

BOOM! 

Unfortunately, Batman was faster and significantly above him in skill. He landed two punches to his collarbone, then a roundhouse kick to his face. Aaron was sent skidding back and before he could recover Batman was wailing on him again.

BAM! BAM! CRACK!

Metal met flesh over and over again. There was no stopping Batman. He held the total advantage in every regard. Even as Aaron bursted with Speed Force energy and grew faster, Batman managed to stay a step ahead. He kept Aaron in close quarters and delivered blow after blow.

A particularly nasty strike threw Aaron several feet back. He could feel the moon shifting from their fight. The moon's gravity didn't matter. With the Speed Force, Aaron could keep his feet down as if he was fighting on Earth.

The same could be said for Batman. His armour must have been installed with gravity functions. His two metallic boots were on the ground of the moon. One hand was in front of him in a fist. Aaron figured Batman must have been using a special kind of martial art specifically intended for him. Something to counter the potential speed difference.

Aaron felt his legs surge with energy. The Speed Force empowering him, eyes flickering with lightning, he charged at Batman. He went faster than light, so much faster than light that the lightning trailing behind him destroyed everything in his path.

CRACK!

The first hit landed. Aaron chipped his armour. 

However, as if he had expected this, Batman struck back in the next moment. Aaron staggered back and was suddenly hit with another. Then another.

BAM! BAM! BOOM! 

The Chosen One ended up high in the air, in the vacuum of space. Pain spread across his body, but it started from his chain. His skull felt as if it had been shattered. However, given that he could still think, his brain was still intact.

He glanced down. Batman was gone.

A heavy leg struck him from behind and he spiralled down into the moon. CRASH! A massive crater was formed.

Aaron groaned. Darkness eclipsed his vision. He could barely see Batman with his normal vision. That was how deep inside the moon he was. 

Aaron healed fast. Very, very fast. Why? Because he was casting healing spells in his mind. With every blow, he healed himself. With every blow, he muttered in his mind, 'Laeh em.'

The Hellbat suit was strong. So, so strong. Aaron couldn't even dismantle it either. Although he was able to teleport Batman and the suit, he wasn't capable of destroying it. Whatever it was made of, it was beyond his current magical abilities.

Skill, strength, and intelligence. Batman had him beat in those attributes.

Speed, abilities, and magic. Aaron held the advantage there.

Aaron closed his eyes. If the Speed Force had returned to him, then maybe…

'Gotham Girl. I order you to fight alongside me at full power.'

Aaron could feel the command take effect. He activated his supervision and watched the floating Batman. He was waiting. He was prepared for whatever Aaron was going to throw at him when he returned.

Never did Batman expect for Gotham Girl to slam into him. 

In ten seconds, she went from Gotham City to the moon. She was a Kryptonian type human, alright. 

But the excitement didn't last long. Gotham Girl threw ten punches that Batman casually avoided before slamming her into the ground with a kick.

In ten seconds, just like that, Gotham Girl was down. Her consciousness weakened in Aaron's mind map.

'Well, fuck.'

Aaron had teleported onto the surface. Batman immediately turned and rushed at him. His fist was at the ready and–

Swish!

Aaron brandished his new sword. A golden blade gleaming with divine power: the God Killer sword. It had gotten absurdly close to scratching the emblem of the Bat. He had missed by a hair's breadth.

"So you were the one who stole that sword," Batman remarked. "Another list of your crimes. That sword is supposed to be with the Amazons."

Aaron didn't respond to his accusations. The Godkiller blade glowed with a golden energy as it cut through the vacuum of space. A threatening message that he was indeed not going to hold back. 

They fell, they fell, they fell, till they were on the surface of the moon.

The Hellbat suit's red glow clashed against the God Killer blade's gleam. Batman lunged, fists meeting the blade's deadly edge. Sparks erupted as they grappled, each pushing against the other's force. Batman's armoured fist jabbed, forcing Aaron back, while the God Killer blade reacted on its own like a monster with its own mind and swept low, missing Batman's leg by inches. 

The God Killer possessed the ability to shape-shift depending on the user's own thoughts and instinct. It was how Deathstroke, a human hardly a million times weaker than Wonder Woman, could do combat with her. In the heat of battle, it guided and adapted to its opponents, no matter if they were human or god.

The two circled, swift strikes and dodges creating a chaotic dance. The God Killer seemed to close any gap in Aaron's guard. Even so, the living piece of divine metal possessed limits. This was Batman, after all, at his absolute peak. The Bat's gauntlet slammed into Aaron's chest, while the God Killer blade's edge grazed the Hellbat suit's shoulder. 

A kick sent Batman stumbling. Aaron used that moment to lunge for a decisive strike.

CRACK!

Batman heaved himself up and kicked him in the jaw. Aaron could feel his brain rattling again. The sword slipped from his grasp and his concentration wavered. 

Batman seized that moment of weakness. Punch, kick, right hook, jab, jab, jab. Aaron was unable to respond in kind because Batman was just absurdly skilled. Batman knew when to hit him and how in order to maximize recoil and damage. 

Aaron wasn't getting away from him. Aaron wasn't going to be able to call his friends.

BOOM!

With a devastating axe kick to the skull, the Chosen One struck the ground and formed a deep crater. Grey smoke erupted from him, a mix of dust and moon rock.

There were already so many craters on the moon that could be seen from the Earth. Batman had just added another for humanity to see.

Aaron saw darkness. His vision was dizzy and he couldn't see. 'W…what's happening?' 

He couldn't remember. He couldn't feel. The energy that had been powering him was slipping away. The Speed Force, magic, the Collective Unconscious, all of it dying within the centre of his mind. A hard boot stepped on his skull. The pain as it brushed his hair and skull sent him deeper in the recesses of his dazed mind.

It was over.

It was done. He couldn't fight. He could barely think.

This was the end.

The end. 

The end.

…

…

…

…

'What exactly is the end?' 

The Earth ending? No. The universe? No. Time itself? No, no, no.

So what was the end?

"When the first living thing existed, I was there waiting. When the last living thing dies, my job will be finished. I'll put the chairs on the tables, turn out the lights and lock the universe behind me when I leave."

The end was beyond Death. The door which Death locked.

Impossibility. The Sixth Note. The Sixth Dimension. 

A realm beyond comprehension where everything falls apart except the truths that are never meant to be seen.

A realm he could see. A realm within the palm of his hand. 

The greyness in his eyes turned bright blue. A blast of energy bursted out and in a massive explosion threw Batman away. He landed, two feet and a hand supporting him.

Aaron Reigner rose.

He put a hand to his face and laughed.

"I get it! I get it! IgetitIgetitIget! It all makes sense now! All of it! The world…this world…it's all underneath my feet!"

He raised an arm and threw it down diagonally. A slash constructed from space and time formed and flung at Batman at unbelievable speeds. If he hadn't guessed the attack from his body movement…

"Ngh…"

…Batman would have died. His shoulder plate was utterly scorched, exposing his flesh.

"What the hell just happened?" Batman asked in a low mutter.

Then, before he could think for a second longer, Aaron was in front of him.

"Haaa?" Aaron back-handed him. Before, he had struggled to overpower him with the highest skill level. But with this sleazy bitch slap, he caused the Hellbat suit to crack. He caused the Batman to bounce away like an ant. 

Batman skidded across the surface of the moon. He traversed miles upon miles and was totally unable to stop himself.

"What the hell…!"

Aaron appeared in front of again. It was like he could command the Speed Force like it was nothing. Like he could teleport. Like he could faster than instantaneous movement. 

"If you're going through hell, you might as well keep going, right!? Right!?"

Batman took a step back. Aaron clapped his hands together.

Their surroundings blinked and they were back at the BatCave.

Batman didn't let himself get flustered. He attacked Aaron, only to miss. Batman swung again but he was like a snail compared to Aaron. His movements were in slow motion from his perspective.

"It was my first time reaching the brink of death and now…I understand it. I understand the forces. Thank you, Batman. I owe you one."

He backhanded Batman again and half of his cowl went flying. His left eye and mouth were exposed, bleeding from the edges.

The Hellbat suit was coming apart.

Batman growled. He punched. He assaulted him. He went from fighting style to fighting style.

Nothing worked. Nothing connected.

"Wally West." Bruce's eyes went wide and he leaped back. Though the cowl was off, the rest of the suit was functional. "You copied his speed."

Aaron laughed. He laughed instead of responding. "Come on, is this the best you have!? Come on, do better!"

Bruce growled. He moved. 

A blast of blue energy, the same from before, rushed at him. This time, without the full assistance of the Hellbat suit, it eviscerated his arm. Bruce staggered back and fell to one knee. His arm socket was leaking blood. With only one arm, with only half of the cowl working, he couldn't fight. 

"BatCave, activate all–"

Snap!

"Already undone." Aaron smiled cheekily. "My magic is much stronger than before now. I can easily dismantle every silly device here."

Batman kept quiet, on one knee. He couldn't do anything. He couldn't move without Aaron noticing. It was like fighting Superman without Kryptonian. It was like trying to react to the Flash without armour or superpowers. The situation was hopeless.

"Don't worry. I'll reconstruct your arm." Aaron approached him languidly. All signs of injuries disappeared, healed by a spell he casted in his head. "The only difference is that I'm going to wipe your memory of this event and then put a mental block on you so that you'll never, ever figure out I'm the Chosen One. That way, this fight won't ever happen again."

Aaron pointed his open palm down at him. What met him was the legendary Bat glare.

"Any last words?"

Batman's glare deepened. "You won't get away with this."

Aaron smiled. "I sincerely doubt that."

Midnight fell as did Batman.

Happy birthday.