Earth's Last Defence [DEFENDERS OF EARTH BOOK IV]

Prodigal Son

The Batwing rocketed through the waterfall, splashing water over the landing pad. The aircraft slowly lowered to the pad, its wings folding upwards. It landed, and the cockpit opened up, the turbine engines turning off. Batman jumped out and onto the platform, removing his cowl. He strode forwards, past the Batmobile, past the Tri-Wing MK2, and up the steps to the platform with the Batcomputer. He approached the computer, and sat down in the armchair, placing the cowl on the side of the desk. Alfred walked up to his side.
"I suppose you dropped Mr Dent off at the GCPD?" Alfred asked.
"Hopefully for a while this time." Bruce replied.
"Your costume, sir." The butler commented. "Might I suggest a new one? That's the same one you've been using since the Kasady case, and you've been too busy as of recent to repair it."
"The costume doesn't matter now, Alfred." Bruce waved his hand at him.
"Not now, no. But if you think this... invasion is happening soon, I'd suggest an upgrade. The Mark 11 will be ready tomorrow, sir."
"Yeah, sure, I'll... sure." He breathed a heavy sigh. He turned his head to Alfred. "Is it enough, Alfred? Have I found enough people?"
"You're asking me if a team composed of one of Earth's greatest martial artists, a man with extraordinary powers and reflexes, an unpredictable psychopath and the spawn of the devil is enough to fend off these... alien attackers?" Alfred raised an eyebrow.
"Alfred, it's different this time around. They aren't going to be drones controlled by a singular being. It's an entire army of individual soldiers, according to Simmons." Batman replied. "I've given them devices that also double as communicators. Hopefully, they'll call when it comes up."
"Then you'll be glad I asked for some additional help." Alfred stepped to the side, and Nightwing dropped from above, wearing a blue and black combat suit with a symbol of a bird in the centre. He shuffled his black hair around, moving a couple of strands away from his eye mask.
"Dick?" Batman stood up. "Alfred asked you to help?"
"You need all the hell you can get, Bruce." Nightwing replied. "I've heard your speech about me needing to do my part in Blūdhaven and put your problems second a thousand times- but that doesn't apply here. This is an invasion, Bruce. You didn't let me help the first time around- but you need everyone you can get." The cave was silent. Even the bats had stopped squeaking and fluttering.
Batman looked at him still. "I was going to say I was glad you came to help, and you'd be a great help to us."
Nightwing widened his eyes in surprise and slight embarrassment. "I... wow. Never thought I'd hear that, to be honest. So, how many people do you have, and who are they?"
"Including us two, five. Peter Parker, Al Simmons and Rorschach. They've all been given devices to alert them when I need them to do what they need to." Batman explained.
"You found anyone else?"
"There are... possibilities. Two, to be exact. There's someone who could definitely help us, but getting them to help us would be difficult."
"How do you know?" Nightwing tilted his head.
"I tried a few months after the Parademon Invasion. Let's hope he's changed his mind since."
Nightwing nodded his head. "And the other possibility?" He asked.
"It's a last resort, if I get too desperate." Batman replied.
"Who is it?"
Bruce looked at him for the longest time. Dick couldn't figure it out at first, but eventually caught on.
"You can't be serious..." Dick said in disbelief. "You'd have to be pretty desperate..."
"If it comes to it, that might be what I have to do." Batman sighed. "I don't like it either. But this is a desperate time, Dick."
Nightwing nodded his head. "Right. Well, while you consider... that, at least consider..."
"I'm not bringing Barbara into it." Bruce said almost instantly. "I need Barbara on comms."
"Can't Alfred do that?" Dick waved his arm in Alfred's direction, who raised an eyebrow in response. "I mean... I didn't mean it like..."
"It's very fine, Master Dick." Alfred turned to Bruce. "He has a point, Master Bruce. She's trained a lot the past few years after you recruited her. There's a female variation of the MK1 in the archives, too."
"I couldn't just bring her into a battle like this behind Jim's back, Alfred. I've done enough letting Barbara work with me already." Bruce persisted.
"It's as you said, Bruce." Nightwing said. "You need everyone you can get."
"Barbara's never fought in the field before, Dick. I'm not just pulling her into a fight against an alien alliance."
"At least consider it, Bruce." Dick turned to go. "If you call, I'll be right there."
"Thanks, Dick. I appreciate it." Bruce smiled. Nightwing stopped, and stared at Bruce for a few moments, before smiling and nodding back, and then grappling up through a small hatch above them.
Bruce turned back to the Batcomputer, and walked over to it. "You know, we could really use Miss Gordon out in the field." Alfred said. "What she lacks in experience she has in enthusiasm and will."
"Alfred." Batman said quietly. "We both know that's not enough. Remember Quentin?"
"I..." Alfred stopped, and looked away in sadness.
"I haven't taken someone under my wing ever since then, and I won't break that now. There hasn't been a Robin since Quentin. There isn't going to be another Robin, and there sure isn't going to be a 'Batgirl', Alfred." Wayne looked away. "Dress it up how you want. He was young and inexperienced, like Barbara. And I took him in."
"Sir..." Alfred put a hand on his shoulder. "Now is not the time to blame yourself for a tragedy that happened years ago. You couldn't stop Quentin from helping you. He would've met that fate whether you said yes or no."
"But I said yes, Alfred. I said yes..."
Suddenly, there was a vibration on Bruce's utility belt- the communicator. He pressed a noise, and Spawn's deep voice filled the cave.
"Bat!" His voice shouted. "My head..."
"Simmons!" Bruce grabbed his cowl and slammed it on, the communicator instantly redirecting to the earpiece. "What's happening?"
"My head... they're coming. Right now, they're approaching." Simmons breathed. Under his cowl, Batman paled. Another voice came from another communicator.
"Bruce..." Spider-Man said, fear in his voice almost. "There's something coming towards New York, in the sky... a lot of something."
Batman sprinted across the platform and towards the Tri-Wing, the faster aircraft, and climbed into the cockpit. Within half an hour he'd be in New York. Another voice came in through the communicator.
"Batman." Rorschach said in his gravely, monotone voice. "Yellow-armoured soldiers in the sky. Plan?"
The Tri-Wing levitated off the platform, and shot out of the cave.
And in the distance was a yellow sky.