Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Calling it a 'night shift' has always been a misleading term.

The Watchtower, floating out in space and looking over the entire world, had no need for day or night on board. The timezone the vessel followed was purely for administrative reasons. On board the satellite, there was no special indication when a day was 'over'

There were however, periods of active hours and inactive ones, correlating closely to how sunny it was in Metropolis. One moment, J'onn was bumping shoulders with hundreds of fellow heroes in a packed deployment room. Balancing countless of incoming missions and reports while assigning the right resources to the right places at the same time. And suddenly an hours passes and he would be completely alone in an empty Watchtower.

On Mars, there was no such oscillation between waking and sleep. There really wasn't any sleep at all. The collective mind always had life feeding into it no matter how many Martians rested. It was like a web that was always shifting, looking for new connections. There was always someone singing on Mars.
Only once they breathed in and only once they breathed out, then there was nothing.

It was, according to J'onn, the hardest thing to adjust to when he arrived on Earth. He'd never been able to put it into words, he had never explained to anyone that he had never slept before. The Martian had never learned how to lean into the silence and have it take you over. To have the dark absorb you completely, to stop singing instead of just humming a softer tune.

'Nightshift' was also a bad word to describe what this was, because Batman never slept at night.

It started after a 27 hour long mission. A jailbreak and a high risk chase involving superhumans and tanks. Between catching bad guys, evacuating entire city blocks and minimising damage, the mission had taken a toll on everyone involved. So it didn't take a mindreader to see the exhausted state Batman was in when they finally returned to their floating headquarters.

The sight of a tired bat was a rare one, because Bruce was used to the long hours and could handle tiredness very well in most cases. But a week of rough nights in Gotham + his daylight duties ++ the big breakout.. it seemed Batman had finally reached his limit. Because J'onn notices during the mission debrief how badly Bruce was trying to stay awake.

For Martians, exhaustion is both the same and very different from humans. Not getting enough rest causes the body to loose their ability to function properly. Just like humans, the mind starts shutting down, desperate for a release. But keeping your body from melting into your boots was a little easier to hide behind a cape than pretending your brain wasn't forcing you to pass out, J'onn figures.

Batman is still trying to pay attention, but at some point during some analysis he stops adding to the conversation and quietly retreats to his projected screen. Anyone looking at Batman would see him squinting at his report, any keen eyes would notice his head lulling and that he has been staring at the same page for a few minutes now.

After his third yawn turns some heads from concerned heroes, Batman excuses himself from the meeting early and vanishes, off to the sleeping quarters to use his bed for the first time in months probably.

The meeting finishes a few moments later and J'onn watches all the other heroes leave for Earth. Their communication links going down for that night after they all decide to take their well earned rest. J'onn stays on the satellite, like always. He will be working through another inactive period as usual. The Watchtower was completely empty except for the odd collegue inbetween missions and the staff members who had shifts all around the clock like him. Work was slow, the few missions still ongoing didn't require any assistance from him.

He too, was exhausted, but one way to relieve tiredness for him was, strangely enough, by working. Maintaining a strict rigid form and focussing the mind on multiple tasks, that was the exhausting part. Right now he needs to do one thing and do it badly.

J'onn enters the elevator and presses to go down to the deepest level of the Watchtower. To one of the floors that needs a special admin code to access. Only a few people know it and he does. He enters one of the rooms where they keep the various generators and machines that make up the Watchtower.

They were due for a deep inspection tonight.

All alone in a giant room with nothing but him and wires. He can easily drop any resemblance of a shape and collaps into a green puddle. Dripping between the openings of the machinery and slipping inside, until he reaches the deepest cores of their operations. J'onn starts checking if everything was up to code, piece by piece.

Meanwhile, J'onn's mind is wandering elsewhere. Without any direction or need for concentration, his brain could finally rest. Beside the beeps of the systems it was so quiet. He didn't hate it when the Watchtower was empty like this, he even found some odd comfort in it. J'onn loves his colleagues, but the more people were around him the more obvious it was that he is an outsider to them still. During the quiet hours the heroes barely speak to him at all, they always saw him as a working authority who didn't want to be bothered. Funny how everyone around him found connection by the same invisible eb and flow he struggles to grasp. Here he was, a melted puddle sliding between metal and plastic sheets, running along electrical currents and computer inputs. The scans on the various generators and space ship modules were going well. At this pace he could go through the entire headquarters in -

( Let's not dwell on this too much, we have important matters to discuss. )
???

J'onn was caught of guard when he heard a voice reach him telepathically, his voice.. He didn't know what to make of it, why was someone reaching out to him in his own voice? That or someone was broadcasting a memory of him, of a thing he doesn't remember saying in the past few days.

It gets the Martian to slither out of the machine he was checking and reshape himself into his familiar form in the middle of the room. For a moment he thought someone was down by the generators and looking for him. But he's still on his own. The psychic link was too weak to trace the message to it's source, he had no idea where the thought came from until the second thought reached him.

( Thank you for putting this together by the way, we've been putting this off for too long .. )

It's his voice again, but in a softer tone, almost a whisper. He's speaking with someone. The memory (memory?) is coming from a different part of the headquarters and J'onn decides he needs to investigate. It's coming from the direction of the bedrooms, so he follows the trail of light conversation, making his way past empty sleeping chambers until he reaches it's source.

( Batman, care to start? )

( yes, in a minute.. )

The door to Batman's bedroom is closed and locked. But it's clear the conversation is being broadcasted by the man inside. Concerning, considering the care the Dark Knight puts into shielding his thoughts from any readers. J'onn hesitates for a right cause of action, as going inside would break every boundary of trust he has with his friend, but the situation was unusual enough to cause worry in him. If he was in trouble, J'onn wouldve sensed some form of distress..right? He becomes more unsure of his own abilities the longer he stands in front of the door.

Keeping his feet grounded to the hallway floor, J'onn lets his mind gently follow the stream inside the room, finding a Bat sounds alseep on the other side. He's dreaming..?

( J'onn, might if i sat with you for this? )

J'onn instinctively pulls out of the dream, before realising it's not him Batman is refering to. Batman is dreaming about him, and his effort to reach out to the real J'onn might not be a concious one. The dream conversation leaks out from his room and flows right to the alien.

It sounds like a very mundane mission briefing, not so different from the one they had that day. Off course Batman would dream about work, J'onn thought. He really doesn't want to eavesdrop. J'onn still wants to respects his friend's boundaries. But just this once, the Martian just lets himself pick up any thoughts send his way, simmering in the idea that Batman has thoughts at all. After all their years working together, J'onn has never been able to look inside his mind. He never felt the need to push it either. If Batman didn't want anybody inside his head, then J'onn would keep that distance. But he's never seen him with his walls down, and how odd that was..

( 7 dead, 23 injured )

( How the hell did we let this happen? )

J'onn doesn't remember those numbers from anywhere, they must just be made up by Batman in his dream. Apparently he's in the middle of scolding the other heroes for failing just like J'onn imagines he would if the real Justice League ever returned home with those numbers.

( It is your fault, Bruce. )

That was different, that was Superman speaking. The meeting turns sour after the sudden accusation as J'onn is suddenly hit by floating murmurings of other heroes as well.

( Bossing us around, like he has any grounds to stand on. )

( No powers, no special abilities, like you coudl've done any better. )

( Pathetic, give us any reason we're listening to this guy and not just going back out there and- )

It's uncanny hearing such strong comments coming from his friends knowing they would never say such things in reality. He knows how much repect the League has for Batman, he can feel it radiate of them when Bruce takes the stand. Even when he's upset, J'onn feels how even Batman's boring lectures cause people to be more determined to change their actions.

But all J'onn feels now is the rising sense that something is escalating here, a dread is creeping up on him the longer he listens to the meeting. The other heroes seem to be slowly ganging up on Batman as the dream turns into the start of a nightmare.

He needs to help his friend, J'onn thinks. And with Batman, Bruce,.. so open and vulnerable in front of him, seperated by a simple door. J'onn makes a mistake. He decides he needs to look deeper into Bruce's mind.

And before he realises he shouldn't be, floodgates open.

( We did all we could )

( No, you didn't. )

( Yes, i did. )

( Who do you think we are, who do you think YOU are? )

( He was just an innocent bystander. )

( 30 injured, would anything change if it were 29 instead? What about 31? )

( He was sitting down, so i killed him. )

( Are you serious, Clark? )

( Get a grip, maybe, you're stepping out of line here. )

( You're nothing to us, neither is that cesspool you call a city or those rules you follow. )

( Only Batman ever disagrees )

( You have a number on it? )

( i.. )

( 237 injured, 7 dead )

( .. gone rouge.. )

( 7 injured, 237 dead )

( ..unable to stop the incoming attack from.. )

( Left at the mercy of the Justice League. )

( We save people, can't save dead people )

( You see Bats, we simply don't care )

( we could destroy them in seconds. )

( what if we decide that's what we want to do? )

(Where is that kryptonite when you need it? )

( You must've left it in your other pocket. )

( Is it me or is it getting a little hot in here? )

( are you injured? )

( 230 injured, 230 dead )

( Are you dead? )

( What is that smell? )

( There's a fire in the hallway. )

( heat vision?  )

( it's always heat vision with you isn't it? )

( By the gods! I see the flames )

( good thing we're immune )

( but i'm not )

( neither is Bats )

( We're not leaving this meeting. )

( Not now. )

( Ah well.. )

( I can't stand the smell, it's like i'm afraid of it.. )

( Get over it, who'd afraid of a little fire? )

J'onn his hit by the faint sounds of crackling fire, then comes the imagery of flames, the burning sensations, that awful smell. The argument turns into chaotic match of incomprehensible dream logic and seems to be turning to a nightmare. The heat burns and he's afraid. Fear itself is affecting J'onn's mind for looking in to deep. And then follows the cry for help.

( J'onn, say something )

It's still not him Batman''s referring to.. compelled by the utter lack of control Batman had started pleading the dream version of him for help. J'onn has to stop himself from reaching out. He can't, he won't, is what he's been telling himself. But he feels the overwhelming helplessness his friend is experiencing.

He can feel Bruce in his own head, the helplessness and loss of control he's going through. That awful feeling when you fall and all you have are a bunch of useless sacks of bones and limbs weighing you down. All the walls you build up around yourself break down, all that you are crumbles and becomes nothing more than a humiliating reminder of how big of a fool you've been all this time.

J'onn standing there in the hallway with no power to stop the distortions from affecting his friend. Knowing he might have literally fanned the flames of his nightmare.

So he takes and deep breath and..

J'onn is back in the conference room, sitting at his usual seat at the table. The smell of burned plastic stings in his face as he takes in his surroundings.
The meeting hall is all warped and distored, partially discolored by fire. Around him are his colleagues, everyone is present for a meeting that now escalated into something far worse.

The other members of the Justice League are there, all a little different from how the Martian knows them, like the way peopl's details change when viewed from the minds of others. They don't seem to mind the room being ablaze, only J'onn does, he feels himself freezing in his seat despite the heat torching his skin. The League is still in the middle of their strange argument, so much weird feelings of anger and envy and fear directed at the man standing next to the Martain.

Batman is at his side. Standing next to J'onn's chair with his hand clinging onto the back of the seat. Nervous and speechless, J'onn has never seen Batman like this. Out of control. Caught unprepared. Bruce tries to speak, when of his teeth falls out and lands on the table with a clatter. J'onn stares at it in front of him, bewildered.

Where does he go from here? J'onn wonders. Batman is having a nightmare about losing control and reached out to J'onn to comfort him. The alien will have to reach out to Bruce to let him know his friend is here. That whatever odd fears he has about his coworkers aren't real.

( Are we always this intimidating in your eyes? )

Batman looks over at his friend sitting next to him, confused by the sudden telepathic communication that was a little bit too clear to be part of the dream. The hold J'onn has on his forearm seems to center him. Batman looks around again, close to realising that he's dreaming, close.

"Not like this.." he mumbles.

J'onn's plan works, Bruce seems to calm down a little and takes a better look over the distorted versions of their fellow League members.

"I see." J'onn says.

The League is still in the middle of mutiny and J'onn tries to keep Bruce's attention away from the accusations they are throwing at him. At some point, J'onn picks up the tooth and rolls it between his fingers. At a light press, it crumbles to dust between his fingerstips. Fascinated by what he's seeing he turns to his friend.

( Can you feel it? )

"What?" Bruce raises his hand to his mouth, before J'onn cuts him of. The Martian lets his free hand up to his friend's face, pressing his index and middle finger softly on Bruce's lip to push it upwards. The hole where the tooth sat before becomes exposed. Bruce doesn't offer any reaction to the touch except for staring at J'onn's face with an unreadable expression. Looking down on the alien sitting in the chair, hand still gripping the back of the seat.

The hand shifts slightly so J'onn can run his thumb along the line of teeth still there, crossing the missing canine until the tip of his thumb settles between the two remaining teeth an presses down on the gums and-

J'onn is thrown out of the dream in an instant with a bitemark pressed firmly into his thumb. He's back in the Watchtower, the real one, and the weird psychic resonance has stopped. Standing in front of Batman's locked door, his friend had stopped dreaming.

He quickly withdraws his last hold on Bruce's mind when hears someone waking up on the other side of the room. J'onn listens to the footsteps dart across the other side of the door while he's still processing what just happened. Batman is up and out of his room in mere seconds. (did he sleep in the suit?) When the door swooshes open, J'onn was still standing on the other side. He feels himself going intangible when Batman steps out and walks straight through his body.

Bruce stops briefly at the feeling and looks behind him. Seeing nothing, he shrugs it off and walks away.

Martians don't dream, something about how their shared conciousness processed new information without the individual needing to sleep. Rest they did, they physical bodies often got tired and needed to regenerate energy. But there was never a need for the brain to shut down, for every thought that needed to be sorted was send to the great mind instead.

It's why J'onn couldn't wrap his head around why humans needed to shut of their brains for hours at the time and where they went while they were in that state. Why did people dream while they were away, and why do they dream the thungs that they do.

In short, why did Batman dream about him?

Batman didn't talk to him after waking up, was he upset that J'onn broke their silent trust? Did he even mean to invite him inside? How could he explain to Batman that he thought it was best to invade his deepest privacy?

The next time J'onn sees Batman is at the control panels a few hours later. When everyone has returned for the day and missions are in full swing again. Bruce is at one of the monitors, working like usual. Nothing about his posture gives off the impression that he just woke up from a nightmare, or that he was betrayed by one of his closest friends just hours ago.

Except, J'onn notices while he's approaching the man, that Bruce was running his tongue over his right upper teeth every now and again. It makes J'onn all the more nervous when Batman doesn't really react to him coming closer. The guilt is rising in J'onn's chest, knowing he broke a deep trust he had with his friend. But he knows the best thing to do is to just explain to Bruce what heppened. Open up and apologise, even when J'onn is still wrapping his head around what exactly happened.

"Batman." J'onn says when he's standing next to him.

"Oh J'onn. Thank you for running those scans on the power modulators yesterday." Batman greets him with.. no hint of anger or dissapointment in his voice?

J'onn blinks.

"I understand you were tired, but was there a reason you didn't finish the entire scan?" Bruce continues.

deep breaths now."Listen, Batman, i am truly sorry for last night and i can explain everything to you, if you would just let me.."

At this, Batman steps away from the monitor and looks at his friend, confused. "What happened?"

"I sensed you were in distress and i did not think when i entered your mind. I just felt that you needed-" J'onn stops talking when he sees the Bats eyes go wide.

Batman just stares at him.

"You did what now?"

Chapter Text

The two had moved their conversation to a different section of the Watchtower where less people could hear them talking. A window in a corner in a hallway. Batman had practically pulled J'onn away when he saw the bitemark the alien was still holding on his finger.

"That was you." Bruce realises, holding onto J'onn wrist to inspect it closer. "How did you get in my head?"

"Your mind called out to me tonight, while you slept, you were asking me for help. I entered your mind and you were simply having a bad dream, so i woke you up." The Martian explains.

Bruce runs his tongue over the teeth again, the memory of the dream slowly comes back to him, "we had a meeting."

The window gives J'onn something to look at while trying to avoid eye contact with his friend. He can feel Batman's stare drilling holes in the side of his face and he's too ashamed to meet it. There's an air of panic surrounding them, but J'onn can't tell if that's him or Batman. When his hand is freed, he hides it and the rest of himself behind his cape.

"You don't remember? He asks Bruce, "i didn't know pulling you out would make you forget."

Batman shakes his head, "i doubt that was you. People forget their dreams when they wake up, that's normal."

"Even nightmares?"

Batman looks at him straight and J'onn has no choice but to meet his gaze this time. "if you thought that was a nightmare.."

"Oh."

"The only thing i remember was having a meeting with the League, then i talked to you and.. fire.. that fire was from you?"

J'onn sighs, "i believe i may have influenced your dream when i entered.. somehow.."

"So you didn't even know what you were doing.. and then put your thumb in my mouth..?" Batman asks. If J'onn wasn't green, it would've been red by now.

"Yes. I am sorry for intruding. I don't dream so i didn't understand what was happening."

"It's fine."

J'onn's confused, "it is?"

"I was tired and let my guard down. I'm sorry for interupting your work." Batman sinks back into his stone cold demeanor. Hiding all the worry from his face.

J'onn still has so many things he wants to ask about what he saw, but Bruce is already worming his way out the conversation.

"Alright." J'onn lets him go, "Now that i know, i'll stay put next time."

"Yeah.. "

He still feels so awful about it, though.

To move on from any lingering feelings that were riled up that morning, Bruce offered to help J'onn finish the maintanance job he interrupted. And Jonn doesn't mind the help. As much as he likes doing these tasks on his own, he doesnt mind being around Batman either.

He had a close bond with Batman that he didn't have with many other heroes. They were both the loners of the group, but they understood eachother. The all-reading and the unreadable together. They could work and fight side by side in complete silence and understand what they needed. No mind reading or talking needed.

J'onn liked that.

Completing the scans together, this time J'onn opted to stay in his regular form and using the computers instead. After a while of chatting about broken technology and maintenace protocols, whatever happened that morning already felt ages ago.

But while J'onn's working he can't help but think back on what he saw every now and again. Bruce swore that dreams had no meaning, but the feelings J'onn felt in there were real. Batman called him for help, there had to be something behind it.

"Batman, do you have any problems with how we run our meetings?" seemed a good way to ask.

"Look, J'onn," Batman saw right through it, "dreams never make sense, don't look into it so much.. does everything make sense when you read people's mind?" He retorts.

"When i travel people's minds i usually find that their brains visualise complex structures in ways they understand.. is that not what dreams do?" The Martian asks.

"Not like there's a way of finding out, people have tried."

J'onn's not an idiot. He's seen the weird corners of the human psyche in every literal sense, he's no stranger to any topics on the theories on how it all functions. He knows it's a lot more than 'Batman is afraid of the Justice League'. But he saw how Bruce felt when he had no abilities to stop his superpowered friends from potentially causing harm.

"Do bad dreams like those ever trouble you?"

"They're annoing, that's all." Batman answers .

"Right."

They spent a few more hours finishing the maintenance work, a little longer than what it would've taken J'onn if he did it on his own. It was already getting dark in Gotham, so when they came back they parted ways. Bruce went back home, and J'onn stayed in space.

The Martian took a moment to check the roster of active heroes: Green Arrow, the Flash and Captain Atom were currently assigned to monitor duty. Mister Terrific ran deployment and there were 7 heroes aboard the satellite. 18 more were down on earth marked as available and awaiting a mission. Out of the founding members, Batman was the only one besides J'onn and Wally on there. Meaning that he was probably out on patrol.

Nothing was stopping the J'onn from joining the heroes on their shifts. Terrific could probably use his help, but he didn't feel like it. Instead, he goes back to the elevator, presses the button to one of the higher floors instead, to the sleeping quarters.

If his name wasn't written on the door, someone would probably mistakingly assume his bedroom was vacant. Despite all the time J'onn spent in it, he never got around to fully decorating it. The standard issued grey bedrooms contained a bed, a desk, a tiny bathroom, some shelves and a display case for costumes and hero equipment. J'onn didn't really need to store any tools so his case was just an empty glowing box taking up space. He had a few books, odd possessions and even a few plants laying around, but they alone could not take the standard out of the room.

All he has to do is morph his cape away and he's ready for bed. He did actually use his bed almost every night.. to meditate. Martians had various methods for meditation, most of them involved balancing your shapeshifting between two states of being. They were usually done standing upright, but J'onn had learned that if humans wanted a relaxing position to meditate, they'd usually do so sitting or laying down. So J'onn had been using his bed as a good spot to try it out. It was the closest thing he could do to sleeping, and it did help him think during times that he was stuck with a problem.

But this time, J'onn actually moves the covers, getting underneath them instead. He shifts his body around until he finds it comfortable enough. The thin blankets hug him in a way he's not used to and he's not sure he likes, but they do provide a pleasant warmth underneath. And there he was.

J'onn closes his eyes and lets his mind drift into nothing. He doesn't like doing this on Earth. Because when he did this on Mars, someone would be there to answer him. Souls would dance, cling to eachother, hand in hand they float in the shared consciousness. But now, where there used to be dancing souls, there was silence.

He wonders if he could sleep, if he could drift so deep into the psychic void and so far from his own body that they would seperate. Maybe he would dream of his home back on Mars, that if he crossed that gap of nothingness he would reunite with all the souls he's lost, maybe he would dream of his friends instead, and set another meeting room on fire. Then he'd ask Batman for help, who knows.

Sleep, even for a few minutes, just long enough so he can wake up with the rest his coworkers and complain about the Watchtower's bedsheets at breakfast in the cantine. But he just can't bring himself to do it. His own body is heavy on the bed, it's weighing him down. Whatever he does he just can't float away from it. Because he knows there are no hands he can hold that would catch him if he floated too far.

He opens his eyes again. Still in his bed, in his room. He feels terrible, hoping for something while knowing he'll never get that connection again. His family is gone and he's alone out there. Alone and never tired.

Weeks pass and the incident between Bruce and J'onn is forgotten about. Nothing really came of it except that Batman avoided sleeping in the Watchtower at all cost, a thing he didn't really do before the incident anyways.. other than that the two have continued working together like normal.

Until it happens again, that Batman reaches out for J'onn in a desperate plea to save his mind from himself.

John Dee, who was briefly known as the villian named Doctor Destiny, has the ability to enter people's dreams and subject victims to their own worst fears, sending them into a deep coma. When Batman faced him last time, he ended up breaking his own mind instead. In the years that followed his defeat, the poor man had managed to recover some of his basic brain functions. He was send to an around the clock care facility where he was soon forgotten by the world of heroes, villians and.. everyone else for that matter.

One day the League receives a report from the police: John Dee had vanished from his room in the facility, that morning a nurse had found his bed empty. The caretakers told police that this was completely out of left field for them, John had never caused an issue before and had no reason to escape. Actually, they didn't think he had the ability to just wander off, since he relied on assistance to guide him from place to place. The cops, worried about John's prior history with breakouts, had asked the Justice League to find him in case something more was going on.

J'onn was the one who called Batman to go, it was the first thought he had after getting the report. Bruce was the one who had found John the first time, and managed to take him in while resisting his nightmare-inducing powers. J'onn was sure Batman would be able to do this on his own, now that John had no more powers and was weaker.

If only they learned from their first encounter, to never underestimate John Dee.

Not only had he escaped the hospital, his PSI powers seemed to have returned overnight. The man had left hospital grounds and ran off into the city, leaving a trail of sleeping people in his wake. At least it made it easier for Batman to find him.

Bruce had managed to track John down to a school, luckily after school hours. There was only one member of staff inside when John broke a window and sneaked inside. A janitor, sleeping on the floor in a hallway where Batman finds him. After the poor janitor is secured in a safe spot, Batman starts combing through the entire school, looking for signs of John. Softly humming the tune that kept Doctor Destiny out of his mind during their first meeting. At the moment he's hoping it would cause a reaction in the man. Maybe the familiar song would comfort him, or it might even anger him. But then Bruce at least knows where he is.

The deeper into the building he goes the more things start to change and distort. It's unnoticable at first, but slowly the hallways become bendy and crooked, the words on the posters start to blend together blend together, the patterns on the tiles lose their rhythm and it becomes much, much darker. It's a sign Batman is heading in the right direction, so he keeps going. Humming the song until someone starts singing along in his head.

( La la la ~~ ♫ )

Batman comes across the school gymnasium, at least that's what he thinks it's supposed to be. The large open area was pitch black and morphed beyond recognition. The various equipment left in the room and hanging from the ceiling form a disorienting jungle of bars and ropes. With the colorful lines on the floor slithering around like worms.

"John?" There's a giant echo in the room, but noone answers.

John must be in the room with him, concidering the state of it. But even for a vulnerable mind like John's, hiding in an open place would seems like a bad idea. Bruce theorises that he might have found a smaller hiding spot nearby. There are plenty of places in a gym that could fit: changing rooms, showers, storage rooms, maybe even an office..

( ♫ )

Now he just needs to find any of those rooms. Easy enough.

( baaatmaaa
                  nnnnn )

He keeps walking, navigating through the visions by leaning against a wall he couldn't even see. As long as he kept a steady pace and focussed on the song in his head, he'd be able to make his way through.

Then an ache hits his chest, when Bruce looks down, he sees his chest plating open up and twist into the skeletonised face of Doctor Destiny. That's a little harder to ignore.

( ha ha ha ha ! )

( Batman! )

"I'm only here to take you back to the center." Batman covers it with his cape and keeps searching.

(( oh Batman are we
             (( singing?
                      Let me ))
                       sing with you! ))

(( ♫ ~ hmm mm hmm mmm ))

"The nurses are woried about you John, they asked me to come pick you up." Bruce tries to reason.

He finds a closed door that feels worse than any other part of the room, that must be where John was hiding himself. In the dark he feels for the handle.

(( DON'T TOUCH THAT! ))

            (( stay away ))

               (( don't go in there! ))

       (( let's sing happy songs together instead ))

( ♫♫ la la la ♫♫ )

"You can't stay in there." Batman warns, "let me take you back."

         (( No! Get away from that door! ))

      (( Just leave me alone.. ))

   (( i don't think these pills are working, doctor. ))

At the very back of the room, Batman finds John Dee, in a state not so different from the people he has put into Arkham Asylum over the years. A broken man hunched over on bare feet with a thousand yard stare into nothing. Shivering on the cold floor of the room, humming softly to himself. He gasps when light hits his eyes but he doesn't even move to look up at Batman. Just keeps murmuring.

( ♫~ la la la )

"John, it will be alright, i'm coming closer now."

( ♫ )
( ♫ )
( ♫ )
( ♫ )
( ♫ )

                ( i'm so happy Batman )

        ( I can sense your fear.. now )

           ( please keep singing for me. )

It's Batman who turns, when a dizzying cascade of thought hits his head. Like a sudden migraine that blurs his vision. He leans on the door entrance for stability when his vision suddenly starts to fade.

                                                       
 ( The doctors are so sweet, )

         ( I have friends there too. )

              ( but i can see their fears. )

                     ( so.. many.. )

             ( I make them sing songs. )

            ( Keep out! Keep out! )

               ( I think it's working! )

         ( i don't feel pain anymore,)

                ( i am so happy and never sad. )

           ( I always sing happy songs! )

            ( i'm so.. happy.. )

( ha ha ha.. )

( ... )

         ( I am 
      ( so! 
             ( haa
                   ap
                 p
                 pyy
                        yy
                  yy
               y
         Y

Y
y
y )
   y )
y )
y
y )
   y )
y )y
y )
   y )
y )y
y )
   y )
y )y
y )
   y )
y )y
y )
   y )
y )y
y )
   y )
y )
)
))

)

♫

( J'onn? )

That's it, a simple telepathic message, that reaches J'onn back in space. A message with so much clarity and desperation packed in it that J'onn can sense something terrible happened. When checking Batman's last pinged location, J'onn sees that he's inside some building and hasn't moved in while. It's all the information J'onn needs and he's off to the teleporters.

He arrives at the school only a few minutes later and flies straight inside. He doesn't see the broken window or the clues leading him to Batman, he doesn't need them to know where to go.

( ♫ La la la ~~ )

( Red sand ♫ )

( ♫ Red planet )

( Red sea ♫)

( ♫ You would not believe )

( All that red i see ♫ )

( Red flowers ♫ )

( ♫ Red light )

( Red skies ♫ )

( ♫ i see such lovely things )

( Through your red eyes ♫ )

Oh.. fun.

A giant mass of psychic energy had gathered in the middle of the building, so concentrated and immense J'onn could hardly believe it came from one person. Compacted murmurings of a madman trying to find a part of J'onn's psyche that was open and exploitable. Crawling deep inside in search of his deepest fears, the closer he gets to the source, the more distorted it becomes.

       ( Red red ~♫ )
            ( ♪ )                     (  Red is red all red~♫ )
 ( ♪ Red sand ) 
( Red sky )                                         
               (  red sea red eyes i see ♫ )
                                                                       ( ♫ )
       ( Red red ~♫ )

"Batman, can you hear me?"

( ♪ )                     (  Red is red all red~♫ )
 ( ♪ Red sand ) 
           ( Red flowers )  ( ♪ )
               (  red sea red eyes i see ♫ )
                                   ( ♫ )
       ( Red red ~♫ )

"Hang on, i'll find you"

( ♪ )                     (  Red lover in house of green in red )
             ( ♪ Red sand ) 
( Red sky )                                                    ( ♪ )
               (  red sea red eyes i see ♫ )
                                   ( ♫ )

( WHY DON'T YOU COME HOME TO YOUR FAMILY J'ONN )

J'onn pushes through. If only he had known Doctor Destiny was back, he wouldn't have send Batman out here alone. But now his friend is in need and he will not let him down. Going invisible and unseen through walls doesn't help hide his telepathic signature, not when he's frantically looking for Bruce's mind in the midst of all the madness. Looking for any sign of connection.

       ( Red red ~♫ )
( ♪ )                                              (  Red is red all red~♫ )
      ( ♪ Red sand ) 
( Red sky )                            ~                       ~
               (  red sea red eyes i see ♫ )

( Red red red red red red )
                               ( Red )            ( Red )             ( Red ) 

                         ~          ( ♫ )                                                    ( Red red ~♫ )
( ♪ )                     (  Red is red all red~♫ )
 ( ♪ Red sand )             ( ♪ )
                                                                        ( J'onn )

There!

           ( Red sky )                                   ( ♪ )
               (  red sea red eyes i see )
        ( ♫ )       ~~~~~~~ ( Red red ~♫ )

( ♪ )                     (  Red is red all red~♫ )
 ( ♪ Red sand )  ~~~
( Red sky )                                                    ( ♪ )
        (  red sea red eyes i see ♫ )

He finally sees Batman futher up ahead. He's stuck in place, holding onto his head trying to keep out the noise.

"Stay awake, i'm coming."

       ( Red red ~♫ )
( ♪ )                                              (  Red is red all red~♫ )
      ( ♪ Red sand ) 
( Red sky )                            ~                       ~
               (  red sea red eyes i see ♫ )

( Red red red red red red )     ( Red sky )                                   ( ♪ )
             (  red sea red eyes i see )     ( ♫ )       ~~~~~~~ ( Red red ~♫ )

( ♪ )                     (  Red is red all red~♫ )
 ( ♪ Red sand )  ~~~
( Red sky )        ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )                                             ( ♪ )
        (  red sea red eyes i see ♫ )
                               ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) 
                         ~          ( ♫ )                                                    ( Red red ~♫ )
( ♪ )                     (  Red is red all red~♫ )
 ( ♪ Red sand )             ( ♪ )                      ( J'onn ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )  ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) 
                                   ( Such lovely things i see ~ ♫ )

Pushing through the distorded visions around him feels like swimming upstream. Gym lines wrap around him like vines and pull him away. But pushes and pushes until he can't get any further. Almost in arms reach of his friend he melts and stretches his limbs into long tendrils, long enough to grab his friend by the sides of his face.

( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       (
 Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      (
Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Bruce! )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( J'onn! )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red )      ( Red )       ( Red )      ( Red ) 

( Red flowers, red light, red sky ♫ )

( ♫ I see such lovely things )

( Through your red eyes. ♫ )