Clara Kent Superwoman

Chapter 27: Meeting with Wayne

Wayne Enterprises's hub, Wayne Tower, sat at the beating heart of Gotham City. It dwarfed the other skyscrapers, sleek, Art Deco and imposing, with an artfully crafted "W" at its zenith. There was something classic about the design that made it stand out, even amongst other buildings of the same era. The Wayne family had been in Gotham since the time of the first settlers, no matter how much changed, how the buildings grew, population expanded and diversified, the city morphed, they were the constant, the centre, that Gotham rotated around. As with any logocentric system, the centre must hold for the rest to function, even if those of the edge of the wheel never know of the core. In the last century, the city had fallen on hard times, people had lost hope, and after the deaths of the Wayne's, the centre had begun to crumble. Without a strong guiding hand of leadership, the cities decay increased, despite people's attempts to counteract it. There had always been a Wayne in Gotham, and without him the city had lost its centre.

But then, Bruce Wayne returned, handsome, rich, powerful, and with the determination to change things for the better. Gotham's White Night became a symbol of hope for everyone, but hope didn't stop drug dealers, mobsters and murderers. Then, something more miraculous happened, a Dark Knight entered the arena. He was unknown, untried, and not part of the centre, but his own darkness sent the decay running. Suddenly Gotham had two heroes, White and Dark. While hope was Bruce's weapon, fear was Batman's, and combined, the city began to recover, the centre held, and things improved.

However, escalation is part of any war and every action has an equal and opposite reaction. With Bruce and Batman came The Joker, Two-Face, Poison Ivy, The Mad Hatter and a rogue's gallery full of Villains determined to stop the city spinning. Then came Robin, the boy wonder, who grew in the eyes of the Gotham public, representing the hopes of today's youth, and maturing into the formidable Nightwing, no longer sidekick, but partner, to his foreboding mentor.

But no one in the circumpherence knew that the centre did not have two parts, but one. Bruce Wayne was Batman, and Batman was Bruce Wayne. It did not take two men to change a city, just one willing to do what was necessary, whatever the cost. So Bruce Wayne gave himself to the cause, Bruce by day, Bat by night, and more and more lately it had become clear the they were the same thing.

"You're brooding again."

Bruce Wayne looked away from the window, seeing his adopted son, Rick, leaning on the door jam. He was not surprised, he'd heard him enter two minutes ago, Rick still had a lot to learn.

"You should be in class."

"My Art History seminar was cancelled, the Professor was at last night's shindig and needed the day off to recover, I feel like I do too. I chased Queen half way across the city last night! I thought I'd sit in on your Swann meeting."

"You mean you wanted an excuse not to study."

"Hey! I'm up to date with all my college work, but you know I want to get some business experience, would it hurt you to let me sit in? Clark is bringing his granddaughter, maybe I could keep her company?"

"The fact that she is a beautiful 18-year-old farm girl would have nothing to do with it."

"From the looks of the Gotham Times she'd already taken."

Rick Grayson dropped the newspaper in his hand open on the table, showing the title "Beauty and the Billionaire".

"You shouldn't believe everything you read."