<hr/><div class="floatleft">(http://www.dadsbigplan.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/batman-the-return-game-on.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong>Batman (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=276885.msg13605226#msg13605226)<br/><strong>Location:</strong>The Watchtower - Hall of Justice<br/><strong>Date/Time:</strong>Oct. 19, 2017, 2100<br/><strong>Tagging:</strong>Open<br/><strong>Content:</strong>(Warnings for gore or sensitive topics. Please don't post smut in this thread.)<br/><hr/>Clark was upset. Maybe not openly, and maybe not overtly, but something was definitely bothering him. Batman could sense it in the way he remained standing, as opposed to sitting with the rest of the League. In his tone and his wording—almost like a stern father giving a lecture. It was subtle, so very subtle, and perhaps not even Clark himself had caught on to it, but it was there, buried underneath the stolid guise of Superman's steadfastness.<br/><br/>It wasn't Metropolis. That was part of it, surely, but large sections of Metropolis had been destroyed in Superman's battles before. Something must have happened. No surprise, if Black Adam was involved; Clark had seemingly always had a bit of a chip on his shoulder regarding the man. Batman didn't blame him, but even with Adam's disregard for casualties, his record had come up clean every time he'd pulled it just in case Superman might be onto something.<br/><br/>And then something interesting happened. Superman wasn't a braggart, but he never shied away from his publicity. He wouldn't have simply forgotten to mention his own involvement with the neutralization of the machine. Of course, there was no guarantee that the two were related at all, beyond mere speculation. Superman could have just as easily decided that the team he'd assigned to the job was adequate to handle the machine, and dealt with the militants himself. Following Black Adam around to reduce casualties was also a possibility.<br/><br/>But if the machine was truly as dangerous and durable as Superman was reporting, then Batman couldn't see him writing it off. Superman always needed to be where the action was most perilous. It wasn't a trust issue, per se, more of an issue of practicality. When you were basically immortal, it made sense to be the one to deal with the most dangerous threats. Add that to Clark's altruism and his borderline overconfident attitude, and the fact that he hadn't taken part in the machine battle only became more and more intriguing.<br/><br/>It was worth noting, at least.<br/><br/>He'd talk to Clark about it later.<br/><br/>Besides, there was something far more concerning to deal with right now. Two things, actually.<br/><br/>Turning the machine over to the proper authorities was a perfectly acceptable outcome. The League wasn't created to become a governing body, only to supplement the ones that already existed. If the machine was indeed powerful enough to take on Starfire, Shazam and Atom by itself, however, military scientists would be the only people to ever get their hands on it. Weapons would be manufactured, and thousands of lives would be lost in a new arms race. In the end, war would only get deadlier, with more aggressive troops itching to fire off their new toys.<br/><br/>The only option, then, if handing it over was to be the decision, was to carefully remove anything overtly dangerous before it was gifted to the government. Atom was likely to want to oversee the process, which would make secretly removing any components dangerous, but not impossible. Both Superman and Flash were capable of moving at faster-than-light speeds, and might have a chance to remove the parts, given a sufficient distraction.<br/><br/>Batman shared a look with Clark. He didn't have to give his answer; Superman would already know his vote on the matter.<br/><br/>Wayne Enterprises logos on the other hand. . .<br/><br/>Batman's eyes narrowed as he looked around the room. There were a lot of faces here he knew very well, and some that were almost complete strangers. Only a carefully selected few knew the face that laid under his mask. Double-talk was going to be tricky, particularly around such intelligent people. Ones who, justifiably, were bound to be suspicious of Bruce Wayne.<br/><br/>"I keep close tabs on the financial records of Wayne Enterprises and their charity, the Wayne Foundation," Batman said after a moment of silence. "No money is spent that I can't trace—all the way down to the last penny. I can tell you the eraser budget in the accounting office for one of the company's subsidiaries in Aruba. Adjusting for price fluctuation, there is no disparagement between the budget and the funds spent. Whatever this is, it likely has nothing to do with Wayne."<br/><br/>What was more disturbing was the logo on the presence of<em>weapons</em>. Wayne Security produced body armor for personal security officers—as well as the staff of personal security teams under Wayne Enterprises employ—but not weapons. "As for the logos themselves, Wayne Weapons was shut down ten years ago and relaunched as Wayne Yards. The production of firearms has ceased since Bruce returned and became the majority shareholder. The only militaristic implements produced by the company are naval vessels. Cruisers and destroyers."<br/><br/>There was a possibility, of course, that the weapons were older than ten years. But then, there was also a possibility that the logos were just spray-painted on by some idiot in a garage somewhere. "I'd have to study one to say anything for certain. Did you bring one back?"