15 Going home

(Bruce POV)

I am currently on a plane, taking me back to Gotham. I think back to my journey and the plans I made. I wanted to make a statement. I admit, using Kyomu Shidan on Ra's wasn't the smartest thing to do. He could have died. But you have to start somewhere. And he was a safe test subject because it didn't matter whether he died. I don't kill if I don't have to, but Ra's is a megalomaniac and a sociopath.

The diary was something that I thought of as soon as I was done with training under Ted Grant. I was different. I was not someone that needed a diary. I would learn mental techniques and the power of mind over matter was something that I already knew to some degree.

Master Matsuda, Chin Li, Tsunetomo and especially O-sensei. All of them taught me how to train my mind first before the body. O-sensei at first wanted me to create something that could be called a 'Mindpalace' but ... it wasn't meant to be. O-sensei said that a clear mind was a powerful mind.

Eventually, I found a solution to this problem. Well, what was the problem? Simple. I had so many thoughts at the same time, that it was nigh impossible to just forcefully confine them. So to protect myself from mind-readers I came up with something else. I did create a Mindpalace. It was necessary to create one to clear my head.

But I did it differently than others. I never created walls a bunker or things you hear. No, I laid my memories out for everyone to see, but I had them circulate. That's right, I had created a Mind Universe and all the different clusters of stars and planets were specific memories. And the entire thing was constantly moving. It followed a randomized algorithm that only I could figure out.

.

So if Martian Manhunter were to enter my mind, what would he see?

He would see an entire Universe in front of him, with Galaxies and Solar systems all rotating randomly and in weird sequences. If he wanted to find something specific ... well that was impossible. The forces of the universe applied in my mind as well.

The void was saturated with my Chi and the stronger I got, the higher the Chi concentration would get. So it was hellish to be in my memories but what about my thoughts right now?

Well, I created something special for that as well. Instead of isolating each thought I have, I made them all come together in one place ... all at once. So if a mind reader were to listen to my thoughts, he would hear thousands of voices all at the same time ... and that was bound to be painful. And my speed of thought would give a speedster a run for his money.

But that wasn't all. I had multiple decoy memories in my mind. What? I am Batman, that was to be expected. Is it over the top? Maybe. Will it protect my most precious information? Definitely.

.

Now what did I do with the meta-knowledge?

Simple. I created black holes, like the one in the middle of the Milky Way. And in there I placed my memories... NOT!!

Are you kidding that was far too lush of a security. No, I created a wormhole inside the black hole and then created an entire inverted world that could only be accessed through the black hole. In there everything was inverted. Meaning EVERYTHING was inverted.

So if someone went in there ... somehow and he was a mindreader ... well in there, he wasn't. And imagine what happens to someone who isn't a mind reader in my mind. Yeah, they will be crushed by the weight of my mind. It was like hundreds of thousands of g's constantly pressing down on you.

Yeah, my mind is a crazy place to be in.

.

.

I left out Giovanni Zatara's training in the diary. I could not risk Ra's bothering them and finding out about their secrets. The training I did there was beyond fun. I really enjoyed myself there. I learned stage magic, sleight of hand and a looooot of arcane knowledge. Imagine that, the template of Thanos, granted me enormous talents in the magic department. So I could learn a lot of magic if I wanted. But that wasn't something I was very interested in...

Just kidding. I would learn EVERYTHING that might be useful for me. But I am a scientist at heart. So I used magic to 'counter' other magic. Other than that, I would use science to solve my problems.

But technology could compete with magic. Oh yes, but only if I make it.

_

(Flashback)

"Never! I already damned my daughter to this life I won't do the same to you, by teaching you magic.", John or Giovanni tells me.

Zatanna and I have just witnessed a being, that John calls a 'demon' disappear and I get his first meeting with magic. I of course know that it exists already but I hadn't seen it till this moment. I asked John to teach him but the latter refused.

"John, I spent the last two years travelling across the world and learning from the best teachers in the world. I haven't told you this but as a friend of my family, you deserve the truth. I am going to become something more than just Bruce Wayne ... a symbol if you will. I will make sure that fewer people have to suffer like I have.

Less people will lose their loved ones to violence and crime and if they do ... I'll be the justice and the vengeance that the loved ones need. However, if there is such a large gap in my knowledge like magic, then that would be quite a nuisance. I prefer to plan ahead for every eventuality so learning magic ... is a necessity."

"Bruce ... do you hear yourself? That horrible drive ... I c-can't teach you magic. You're brilliant, but ... you're dark. Terrible men with the greatest intentions have sought out magic and turned into nightmarish ... fascists.

But beyond that, magic is about a price Bruce. To use it costs you something. It pains me to say it but you have nothing else to give but that drive and darkness. I can see it. It's all you are now.", John said.

I knew that he was wrong. The drive was not all I had left. I also had my incalculable intelligence and science. But I wasn't interested in giving up either of those things. I was however convinced that there was a way I would be able to use magic without paying any form of price. Because I was convinced that 'magic' was just another word for energy manipulation.

.

In the next few days, Zatanna and I read a lot of arcane knowledge on how to stop Shantoz, the demon that had appeared before John. I did it to increase my understanding of this practice called 'magic'. Funny enough, I already had an idea of something that could stop this evil creature. And that was ... not with magic, but with science. Although there was some of what you could call 'magic' added as well.

"We're dealing with one called Shantoz. Every 20 years he escapes hell and ... feasts on the souls of the broken-hearted. That's why he was attracted to my father."

"Indeed, John is depressed and sad over the loss of your mother. And since Shantoz loves to feast on that emotion he approached him.", I said absentmindedly. I was currently practising a coin trick that was real magic. But it wasn't working as intended.

"Bruce you can't just learn magic the same way you learn all the other things. It's not a muscle you can flex."

I remember turning around to her and looking at her with my usual intensity and saying.

"I can do ... ANYTHING, I set my mind to. This manipulation of this 'mystical' energy is no different. Give me a few days and ..."

"No, Bruce. The one thing that magic requires is ... surrender.", Zatanna told me. I stopped at that and thought about it. That made things more difficult. Quite the conundrum indeed.

"You never surrender, Bruce. I've known you ever since we were kids. But it doesn't matter. I have enough magic for the both of us now anyway."

Surrender? What a stupid notion. Surrendering is not necessarily the equivalent of weakness, since falling in love also means surrendering or letting go, but in this case, I can only say that it means the same as a lack of knowledge. I will find a way to do magic without having to surrender myself.

.

That night, Zatanna began to draw multiple lines on my body.

"These marks ... they enhance your feelings and radiate them. Since Shantoz is attracted to the broken-hearted, I believe we will be able to lure him in this way."

"So we're going to use me as bait. What a bad plan this is. You know I made something that I believe will seal the f*cker-"

"No, Bruce. Science won't work on a being of Shantoz's degree. This will bait him and he will come here quickly.", Zatanna explained.

"Tsk."

How naive she was. The pain I felt was the pain of 5 whole Ricks, a Thanos who was never accepted, the loss of friends of a 2000-year-old Azmuth and of course Bruce Wayne. This spell probably wouldn't just lure Shantoz here. It might attract ... shit.

I started to walk around the house. I hadn't even taken two steps when Shantoz appeared. He looks like a blood-lusted grizzly bear or a Shark. He was surrounded by fire.

"I have never smelled such PAIN!!! Such ... sorrow wrapped in thousands of layers of control ... oh how delicious!! I can feel myself salivating. I feast on the broken-hearted, but the taste of such pain ... ah, how wonderful."

I go through with the plan and run away. I led him to the trap that Zatanna prepared beforehand.

"ereh sselrewop era uoY. deppart era uoY", Zatanna says and tries to trap Schantoz. But it doesn't work as the spell is too weak. It backfires and something else happened then.

I have had enough of this bullshit and just take out the device I have created for this moment. It is a small metallic box. I activated it and the box opened. A sudden suction comes from the device and a green bubble wraps around Schantoz, effectively stopping him from moving.

"WHAT?! WHAT IS THIS? WHAT DID YOU DO?"

"I proved a point you ugly f*ck. Don't f*ck with me! Now enjoy life in this seal.", I say and the bubble grows smaller and vanishes in the box.

.

"What was that, Bruce? How did you do it?", Zatanna asked. But also John was curious. He had never seen any form of device working on the mystical aspects. But this ... this was a first. He couldn't come up with a useful answer. And the pain he felt when Zatanna activated the spell ... it was unlike anything he had ever felt. For a boy to feel something like that.

John told me on our last drink when we said goodbye, that he had never felt something like that. And that I walked around still sane ... was a miracle.

Pfft, Sanity ... what would I do with something as useless as that?

"I call it, the evil spirit containment box. I created it after reading some things with Zatanna today. I wanted to see whether I could do it. I wanted to point the middle finger to all those who thought I couldn't do something. It was a test and now I know ... I can truly do anything."

(Picture)

"Wha?! You made this ... in one day?! That is outrageous!!", John screamed.

"Well it was more like a few hours, but I get your point. It was indeed rather long. I should have managed to do it faster ..."

"..."

"..."

"WHAT THE F_____"

(Flashback End)