Monolith

Chapter 4: Cass

Clark

Batman was missing.

While it was exceptionally unusual for him to miss a meeting (Nighthawk's first appearance came to mind), he wasn't always reachable for any requests or inquiries between meetings. So, at first, the league simply assumed he was busy and left it at that.

However, after two weeks passed and several messages asking for his input on rising tensions between two alien races with a long history of conflict remained unanswered, Clark started asking other league members for news, without much hope. Batman generally didn't talk to anyone privately. (Part of Clark thought that he had some sort of Bat-rule against making friends. He'd crack one day, though, if Diana had anything to say about it).

Seventeen days passed, and finally Clark had had enough. Something was obviously going on, and Batman could be hurt or worse. Diana was busy doing ambassador work on behalf of Themyscira, J'onn was busy with police work as John Jones - in fact, almost everyone Clark could reach seemed to be busy. He knew for a fact that a great many of them were less busy than they claimed, and just were reluctant to go to Gotham.

Part of the reason that Clark had taken so long to realise that Batman was human was because it didn't seem possible that anything could go up against Gotham's particular brand of rampant insanity and come out on top. In all honesty, he didn't blame the leaguers for being reluctant to go. Oblivious as he sometimes seemed, Clark knew he was highly persuasive - but even when it was him asking, most anyone with any sort of common sense equated visiting Gotham to visiting the bottom of a very large vat of acid, and politely declined.

There was nothing in the news that indicated anything out of the ordinary for Gotham. Only the usual explosive chaos, psychopathic Arkham escapees and nonsensical crimes that gave the city its... unique atmosphere. (The latest news headlines said there was a moat filled with very large eels surrounding Wayne Tower, courtesy of some sort of magic. Harley Quinn had taken to sailing around it on a little boat, accompanied by Poison Ivy, who was enjoying growing aquatic plants. The Arkham employees hadn't the heart to put them back in confinement; the only problem they'd caused since escaping was putting up signs around the banks of the moat that proclaimed "The Joker's a Bitch" in pink sparkly lettering.).

The only people in the Watchtower who seemed relatively unoccupied were the three Diana had lovingly dubbed the Chaos Trio. Clark felt a modicum of guilt referring to them that way, but he could not deny its accuracy.

Hal, Barry and Ollie were eating in the cafeteria when Clark approached them to ask for assistance in finding Batman. Hal looked up and yelled "HA!" in Ollie's face loud enough to make Barry jump. Ollie groaned and passed over a wad of notes to him while Barry laughed at them both uproariously.

'Were you... betting on when I'd ask you for help?' Clark asked, perplexed.

'Yep.' Hal said, with absolutely no shame, counting his money. Ollie and Barry nodded in solidarity.

'Gotham, huh?' Ollie said, tipping his chair back on two legs and tugging at his beard. 'Awful place. But I suppose we've got to go and see what tall, dark and goth is brooding about now.'

'It's not that bad.' Said Barry, in a valiant attempt at positivity.

Even Clark looked at him in disbelief, and Hal snorted so loudly it echoed. 'Last time I was there, someone shaved the back of my head. I didn't even notice until it was pointed out to me. What the fuck? Who does that? How did they get close enough? I was airborne the whole time.'

'I'm not even going to ask you if that's true or not. It happened in Gotham, so I know it is.' Ollie replied, letting his chair clang back onto all four of its legs.