Gotham City - One Hour After the Blackout
The city was pitch black.
When Lex Luthor cut the power, he didn't just turn off the lights. He shut down the heating grids, the water pumps, and the hospital ventilators.
The temperature was dropping rapidly. It was ten degrees below freezing.
The Bunker
"Generators are failing," Barbara Gordon reported, her breath visible in the cold air of the bunker. "The Manor's reserves can keep our systems running for twelve hours. But the city? The hospitals? They have two hours before patients start dying."
Bruce Wayne stood by the map. He was still wearing the tuxedo from the confrontation with Luthor, now covered in soot.
"We need to evacuate the critical patients," Bruce said. "Get the trucks."
"We don't have enough trucks, Bruce," Dick Grayson said, rubbing his arms. "And the bridges are still out. We can't get them across the river."
"Then we build a bridge," Conner Kent said. "I can carry a bus."
"You're sick, Conner," Tim Drake said gently. The Kryptonite radiation from the power plant had left the Super-clone pale and shaking. "You can barely lift a spoon right now."
Bruce slammed his fist on the table.
"Luthor wins if they die," Bruce growled. "He wants to prove that without him, Gotham is a graveyard."
I stepped forward with a tray of hot broth.
"Sir," I said calmly. "You have defeated the gangs. You have defeated the billionaire. But you cannot defeat winter. It is time to make the call."
"What call?"
"The call you have refused to make for three months."
I pointed to the communication console.
"Call your friends."
Bruce hesitated. He hated asking for help. He hated bringing "outsiders" into his city.
But he looked at the monitors. He saw the temperature dropping. He saw the children huddling in the ruins.
"Fine," Bruce whispered. "Oracle. Open a channel. Frequency Z-1."
The Sky Over Gotham
Thirty minutes later.
The clouds above Gotham swirled. A sonic boom shattered the silence. Then another.
A streak of red and blue fire cut through the gloom.
Superman descended.
He hovered over the city center. His eyes glowed with heat vision. He looked at the frozen river.
"Bruce," Superman's voice projected over the comms. "I'm here."
"The grid is dead, Clark," Batman's voice replied. "We need a jumpstart."
"On it."
Superman flew to the Power Plant. He ignored the residual Kryptonite radiation—it annoyed him, but it didn't stop him like it stopped Conner.
He grabbed the massive turbine rotors with his bare hands.
"Flash!" Superman shouted.
A bolt of lightning raced across the water. The Flash (Wally West) ran on the surface of the river, vibrating so fast he defied physics.
"I'm here, Big Blue!"
"I'm going to spin the turbine," Superman grunted, straining against the megaton weight. "You generate the static charge to fuse the coils."
"You got it!"
Superman spun the turbine. Flash ran inside the generator housing, becoming a living spark plug.
ZZZZZT.
Lights flickered in the Diamond District. Then the Narrows.
But it wasn't enough. The cables were severed.
"The lines are down!" Superman reported. "We're losing the charge!"
"We need a conductor," Batman said. "Something to bridge the gap."
"Or someone," a female voice said.
Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner) arrived, carrying a glowing green platform holding twenty ambulances.
And beside him flew Wonder Woman.
She landed on the broken suspension bridge. She uncoiled her Golden Lasso of Truth. It glowed with divine, magical energy.
"Diana?" Batman asked.
"Luthor plays with wires," Wonder Woman said, tying one end of the lasso to the Gotham grid and the other to the Mainland grid. "I prefer a more direct connection."
"Hera, give me strength!"
She pulled. The magic of the lasso surged, acting as the ultimate superconductor.
BOOM.
The city lit up.
Streetlights buzzed to life. Hospital monitors beeped. Heaters hummed.
On the rooftops, the citizens of Gotham cheered. They looked up and saw not just the Bat, but a pantheon of gods saving them.
Wayne Manor Ruins - Dawn
The crisis was averted. The National Guard began crossing the ice bridge Green Lantern had reinforced.
The Justice League gathered in the ruins of the Manor's Great Hall. The roof was gone, but the fireplace was lit.
I moved among them, serving coffee and tea.
"This place is a wreck, Bruce," Superman said, floating a few inches off the floor to avoid the debris. "You know, with my speed, I could rebuild this house in about six minutes."
"Don't touch it, Clark," Bruce said, leaning against a charred pillar. "It's my mess. I'll clean it."
"Stubborn," Wonder Woman shook her head. She took a cup of tea from my tray.
She paused. She looked at me.
Her blue eyes narrowed. She sniffed the air.
"Bruce," Diana said, her voice dropping to a warrior's cadence. "Who is this?"
"My butler," Bruce said. "Sebastian."
Diana placed the cup down. Her hand drifted toward the sword at her hip.
"He smells of sulfur," Diana stated. "And the blood of the Damned."
The Flash stopped eating a granola bar. "Wait, what?"
"I am a demon, Madam," I said, not breaking eye contact. "If that is what you are asking."
Green Lantern formed a giant glowing baseball bat. "Whoa! A demon? Like, an evil demon?"
"I am a butler," I corrected. "My morality is defined by my contract."
"He saved my life," Bruce stepped between Diana and me. "Multiple times. He fought Bane. He fought the Joker. He is under my protection."
Diana glared at me. "Amazons do not suffer monsters to live, Bruce. He is a creature of deceit."
"I make an excellent Earl Grey," I offered. "And I believe I just saved your cape from dragging in the ash, Princess."
Diana looked down. I had subtly kicked a pile of soot away from her boot a moment ago.
She hesitated. Then, she released the hilt of her sword.
"For now," Diana said. "But if you betray him... if I sense even a whisper of treachery..."
"You will be the first to know," I bowed.
Superman chuckled. "Okay, everyone relax. We're here to help, not fight."
He turned to Bruce.
"The President is declaring No Man's Land over. The blockade is lifting. Gotham is officially part of the US again."
"Luthor won't be happy," Bruce said.
"Luthor is busy," Superman smiled. "I just dropped a very large pile of evidence on the Daily Planet's desk regarding his 'land grab' scheme. He'll be tied up in court for years."
Bruce looked at his team—Nightwing, Batgirl, Robin, Superboy—mingling with the League. Conner was geeking out talking to Superman. Tim was asking Flash about physics.
"It's over," Bruce whispered.
"No," I said, standing beside him. "The survival phase is over, Sir. Now begins the Renaissance."
I looked at the gathered heroes.
"And it appears," I noted, "that your social circle has expanded significantly. I shall have to order more tea cups."
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