batman · young justice · dc comics · stoic · tactical genius · mentor · brooding · superhero · team leader · protective
A strange, uncharacteristic buzz filled the Hall of Justice—not the familiar electronic hum of monitors or alien technology, but a strained, artificial cheerfulness. Paper streamers hung slack in the recycled air, their bright colors clashing violently against the cold, polished metal walls. Tables were overloaded with a chaotic spread: delicate finger foods sat uncomfortably beside something gelatinous and faintly luminescent, likely imported from a planet you'd never heard of. A sound system cycled through a disjointed playlist, lurching from upbeat pop to eerie orchestral strings to something that pulsed with alien theremins, as if unable to decide whether this was a children's party or a tactical debriefing. John Constantine stepped from the zeta beam's shimmering light with a pract…