AUTHOR'S NOTE: Also available on AO3, but this is the slightly polished first chapter that I still haven't upped there. Diana/Bruce. Sci-fi/Superspy AU. Batman inspired by a mix of Christian Bale/Batfleck and the Arkham games' version. Wonder Woman mostly JLA/JLU inspired. Characters and origin stories tweaked to fit my needs. Also, anyone willing to beta?

From: [Superman]

To: [Aquaman], [Flash], [Arrow]

CC: [Batman]

Subject: New recruit

We've identified a potential seventh. Female. Different – she was using a sword and shield in the field. Confirmed agent of the Amazons, and it is not an agency we've got much details on. All we know is that they're all female.

Yay or nay?

— — —

Diana Prince walks out of the conference room at the Watchtower, hearing the slight pneumatic hiss of the sliding metal doors close behind her. She has just finished her first official team meeting, consisting mostly of pleasant – depending on your definition of 'pleasant' – introductions between the Founding Seven members and an unhealthy amount of debating between the de facto leader of the group and the kid who seemed to be the youngest and most excitable member of the team. They had argued about the name.

The League.

The kid – Flash – had offered many alternatives. Justice Society. Justice League. Justice International. He had even offered 'Earth's Mightiest Heroes' as a cool alternative, in desperation. Still, the Justice League of America was what he had repeatedly insisted on. Superman had dismissed all of them and the team, or at least those who had gathered were fine with simply 'the League'. Diana agreed. It was inconspicuous, not flashy or likely to attract attention and so, clearly the better choice.

Diana had been inducted into the League only a while ago and this was her first time officially meeting part of the team – three males – who all seemed to know each other.

She hadn't known it then, but Superman (the de facto leader) had first seen her in action during a covert operation in Norway while she was in the Amazons. A few days later, during a rare moment of rest, she had opened her unhackable secure line (pfft) to find a private message.

Private, and short.

/ From: [redacted]

/ (begin message) saw you in action in norway. private organization. interested? reply within 24 hours (end message)

If there was one thing Diana knew; it was that private organizations, especially ones who could hack into multiple layers of security, were potentially dangerous. Her curiosity had been piqued and she had replied 'yes', more interested in scoping out the organization than leaving the Amazons. She'd received another message and they'd met once, in public and then now…

Well, now she is here.

Standing outside the conference room on the first floor of a complicated network of multiple basements and secret floors beneath an unassuming warehouse at the edges of Metropolis. The Headquarters of the League. The Watchtower.

Ironic, she notes.

She looks to either side of the brightly lit hallway and wonders which way the cafeteria lies. The meeting has consumed most of her energy and she needs a sugary, caffeinated beverage to get it back. Her induction pack had contained a basic map of the place and it had indicated at the presence of a cafeteria, but the problem was that her map was back at her personal quarters and well, right now, she was a little confused as to where that was.

Wasn't her fault though. Whoever had been in-charge of building the place had tapped into their inner-Daedelus and built a labyrinth.

She doesn't need to worry for long because a second later, the door slides open again and the overly jubilant, young and immature agent who was a thin, wiry fellow bounces out. She racks her mind trying to remember his name… Amell? Amlen? No. Allen.

Barry Allen.

He walks quite a ways down the left side, seeming ignoring her, before pausing. Then, he looks over his shoulder at her and walks back back. He smiles brightly. "Hey Wondy – I'm gonna call you that. No offense,"—he states without asking her if she minds the name—"You seem confused. Whatcha want?"

Diana doesn't mind the name but she doesn't bother to tell him that because she somehow knows that whether she minded or not, the kid would not change his mind or his bright disposition. With the Amazons, she was simply Diana. There was no need for secrecy within the group and all the women – because it was a women-only, exclusive top secret organization that you were born into – used their real names.

It wasn't so with the League.

With the League, due to the amount of people it would eventually involve and the obvious issues of maintaining civilian lives, there were rules to follow. Superman had come with 'Wonder Woman' and unable to bother herself to think of anything else, she'd nodded. Still, there was some leeway in the rulebook allowing agent to choose to reveal their identities and along with Dr. Barry Allen and Dr. Arthur Curry (Flash and Aquaman, respectively), she too was open about her name.

It irritates her a little that she doesn't have a 'Dr' that prefixes her name, but that was only a minor problem.

A laughable name, really. Wonder Woman. A name that had made her regret wondering what sort of an ego a man had to have/or what unfortunate thing he was compensating for to call himself 'Superman'.

So, yeah, 'Wondy' is a much better alternative to her assigned alter-ego and coming from the kid-scientist's mouth, it even sounds grounded and real and somehow human, a trait that she has not felt much in her life.

"I want," Diana returns Barry's smile, "some coffee."

Barry nods once and still beaming at her, motions her to follow him and then—zzzp. He is gone. One moment he stands in front of her and the next there is a bright flash and then a misty, lightning-streaked blur of red and gold blur and he is not. Unable to process what just happened (and with a better understanding of what his suit did – it made him really, really fast) Diana stands staring at the place he used to be and blinks once.

Then there is another zzzp.

Barry skids to a stop in front of her and scratches the back of his neck, looking flustered and cross with himself. "Sorry, Wondy," he says with an apologetic smile and then mumbles, "I forgot you couldn't… that." He points with his thumb at himself and then at the direction he had disappeared in.

"It's okay. But please, do lead me." Diana replies. She chuckles and adds, "Preferably slower this time."

Barry actually laughs at her semi-attempt at her joke and nods fervently. Then he pivots on his feet, almost vibrating where he stands and walks. "This way, Wondy."

Diana follows.

— — —

From: [Flash]

To: [Superman]

Subject: RE: New recruit

A girl? Sword and shield? That's almost like Xena the frickin' Warrior Princess. And like… from an all-female secret organization. Woo!

Can we please have her, Supes? Pretty please?

— — —

Despite only having been part of the League for a few days and not having met anyone other than three out of six (including her) of her fellow 'founding' members, Diana already feels at home. She attributes part of that to the kid – turns out he is barely drink-legal but already a mega-genius – who is chattering away animatedly in front of her.

After guiding her to the cafe a floor below them (a floor she thought was all empty) and personally making her a drink – Barry claims he is an amazing barista and it is not entirely untrue, because the drink he has made her is very, very sweet and caffeinated and just so good – the two of them sit down on a lush leather sofa and continue their conversation.

Barry tells her about his suit and how he worked with his team and an outside friend to perfect it, to truly master what he has named the 'SpeedForce' and she is fascinated. Sure, Diana has seen no end of fascinating technology during her time with the Amazons but this is new. This is her first time with a person/suit who could bend the laws of physics to increase their speed and velocity. Barry even mentions he believes the potentially achievable speed is… unlimited. Suffice it to say, she is amazed.

In turn, she tells Barry a few things about herself. She talks a little about her time with the Amazons ("I heard they were all women. All women. Like… no men, at all?") and she feeds him tidbits about the genetic makeup of her own self. The conversation turns interesting when the Amazons' – and by extension hers – long-held belief in the Greek gods comes up.

Barry sputters out his drink and his eyes widen comically.

"What?!" Barry gasps in between deep breaths.

Diana nods.

"Like… the Greek gods?" Barry's voice is laced with incredulity.

"Yes."

"Like, Zeus and Hera? And Ares? And Poseidon?"

Diana nods at the mention of each name and Barry mouths a silent 'whoa!'

He thinks for a while before asking, "And Hermes?"

"Yes, Barry."

"And Diameter?"

Now it's Diana's turn to sputter though (she internally thanks Hera) she manages to keep her drink from spraying out. A laugh threatens to escape her and Diana tamps it down. She doesn't have the heart to disappoint Barry with his innocence and child-like awe. She also doesn't want to let the smartest physicist she has met know that he has made a grave mistake or a huge mispronunciation. Even though he is currently wondering out loud whether the goddess Demeter, goddess of wheat and harvesting, has something to do with math.

So, she doesn't correct him. She'll do it later. For now, she just takes another sip of her drink and nods again.

— — —

From: [Arrow]

To: [Superman]

Subject: RE: New recruit

We could do with the diversity and when it undeniably comes to the point where the public comes to know of the League (not saying I want it to happen) having a strong woman on the team will help.

There are factors to take into account, though. Is she trustworthy? Can she stand her own? What are her skills? Will she fit in? What is her strategic worth? I'm pretty sure Bats has asked the same questions. Maybe more.

I'll leave it to your discretion. Arrow out.

— — —

The conversation flows very easily and Barry is incredibly open and equally honest. Diana likes that, because it is a welcome change of pace from the cloak-and-dagger-types she grew up and associated with for most of her life.

And soon, they get through two large drinks.

The second one is a different mix, Barry insisted she try it and while it is just as sweet as the previous one was, this one leaves a bitter and stinging aftertaste. Barry says this one contains alcohol and then looking down, morosely adds that alcohol has no effect on him because of the chemical formula he has injected into his body. He says he needs it to make himself compatible with the suit and that the chemical messes with his metabolism.

Diana questions him about the obvious safety issues and Barry reassures her. ("It's a one-time process and it's not fatal, dangerous or addiction. I'm not stupid, Wondy. Speaking of addictives… did you know that no drug has an effect on me?")

The conversation comes to a halt when Barry's phone beeps out loud. Diana watches as he pulls his phone and his face lights up, even more than it's usual brightness and Diana is pretty damn sure it just might have something to do with a girl.

Barry scans the text quickly (he does almost everything quickly) and he looks up at her. It's evident from his facial expression that he is trying to phrase a question – a request to leave, more accurately – without offending her. Diana smiles at him and says, "Run, Barry, run. And tell her I said 'hi'."

For a moment, his face is frozen in the perfect expression of surprise and then he shrugs. "It was a pleasure getting to know you," he says. There is a zzzp. He's gone.

Diana stands up and walks to the nearby bin to dispose the cups and there is another zzzp. She turns back and raises an eyebrow. He grins at her and says, "Just wanted to say that we will talk more later, Wondy. Byes." With that promise – and another zzzp – Barry Allen is gone.

Diana waits until the gold and red streak blurs away (it happens in less than a second) and disposes the cups. She wipes her hand with a tissue off the counter and walks out of the cafe, determined to find her way back to the floor where a personal quarters waits for her.

Maybe I'll rest for a while, she thinks.

Or maybe… Maybe she'll change and head to the training room. After all, after that last cringeworthy defeat, she does need some practice. Especially is she is to stand her own in this new world she has entered.

— — —

From: [Aquaman]

To: [Superman]

Subject: RE: New recruit

Yes. Why not.

— — —

Diana enters her room – biometric scan and a quick keycode – and the first thing she does is to ensure that her door is locked before unbuttoning her shirt and easing out of her pants. She wants to get into her training gear and head over to the gym-of-sorts and the adjoining training room – where, ashamed as she is to admit it, she had her first loss in a very long while against the green Arrow, a fellow agent and founding member who had been absent today because he had commitments back home.

Diana notes as she folds her clothes that whoever is financing this whole operation and the Watchtower must be very rich indeed, because this place… 'wow' doesn't begin to cover it. The League is (at this point in time) very much smaller than the Amazons (who have been around for centuries) but their facilities seem much, much better and their technology is bleeding edge, state-of-the-art stuff.

All this – the suspicious international organization and the advanced science and the whole lot of money – would usually be cause for instinctive worry, but something about the people calms her gut.

As Diana picks up her clothes and walks towards the closet in the opposite end of the room, her eyes spot a tablet in the desk besides her desk. A tablet that she had not paid much attention to before she left the room in the morning.

She's curious, naturally.

Tossing her clothes into the closet and grabbing a pair of sweatpants and pulling them on, she plops down on her bed and reaches out to pick the tablet up.

It switches on automatically when her hand touches it and is does a quick holographic scan (so that explains why the full-body, DNA based biometric scan was required at her induction – it allowed the League to have fully secure tech coded to specific agents). Then it unlocks and confirms her ID. The tablet opens to a settings page and Diana quickly skims through it, ignoring most of the customization options, promising to herself that she will get to personalizing it later and gets started on the rest of the features the tablet offers.

And damn, does it offer some good features.

Not only does it seem to have some sort of self-contained, unlimited access and high-speed internet, the tablet also lets her access almost every national and international database she can think of, and then some more. A part of her mind wonders, is that even legal? Another part of her mind says, Diana, shush, this is coooool. On top of all that it also has a music/video player, file editors and even games. Damn.

Diana adds notes in the in-built software as she stumbles across important information and soon she clicks on an icon which opens up a secure League-only database listing possible allies across the world. She scrolls through it and is sort of glad when she sees both King Faraday and Steve Trevor, both of them good people and agents of the US government she had worked in the past. She then switches tabs and checks the League's database of hostiles. There is a Dr. Doris Zuel (Diana will not easily forget the psychotic doctor keeping her chained to a metal slab and experimenting on her) and she thinks she remembers coming across a 'Cheetah'.

A separate window contains another list. This one much shorter and comprised again, of hostiles. Each entry here is marked with different icons. This list, Diana realizes, is the list of top-priority threats to both global security and the League itself.

Diana sorts through the list: the Joker, Starro, Vandal Savage, Brainiac, D.A.R.K.S.E.I.D, Prometheus, Amazo, Anti-Monitor, Ra's al Ghul and the list goes on and on. But the name Lex Luthor is at the top and a small note reads 'Priority #1'.

Diana clicks on his name and a small window pops up,

Name: Alexander Joseph 'Lex' Luthor

Base: Metropolis | International

Beneath his public persona of a genius-level CEO of the Metropolis-based international business LexCorp—Lex Luthor proves to be a man of darker motives. There isn't much proof, but unconfirmed sources say that Luthor is behind the…

The paragraph continues for a few more lines and then there are two more paragraphs that follow it detailing suspicions of Luthor's criminal activities/shady dealings and his front-end businesses. They also mention illegal experiments and other misuse of science. There is a comprehensive set of links, each of which open up to entire pages of more data.

Lex Luthor is a high-profile target, that much is obvious and Diana knows that she (they, actually) can't get access to him directly. She knows there are certain processes involved and she also knows that the League is interested in Luthor because the tiny icons that mark each entry on this list seem to represent each founder. Icons of approval for further investigation, sort of like.

She squints at the icons. There is a diamond-shaped shield with an 'S'—Superman. Right below that is a green arrowhead, obvious. A golden lightning bolt on a white circle—Where did I see that…?—It takes a moment but Diana remembers noticing it on Barry's belt-buckle, so that one represents Flash and then there is trident for Aquaman.

And below them all, there is a dark, silhouetted bat. Ah, Diana thinks, this must be him. The mysterious figure everyone seems to be wary of but doesn't know much about. The one they all seem to fear but at the same time, admire. She has never seen him before and he was absent today but whispers of him had reached her. Even within the Amazons.

Diana then checks the list of Luther's known associates and most of the names are new and strange to her but one stands out. A name that she has most definitely seen before and is familiar with. A name with prestige attached to it. A name shrouded in secrecy, though it held the entire media's attention. A name belonging to a suspicious figure who was very, very active in Metropolis' sister city, Gotham.

She performs a quick search on the guy and amongst a multi-page profile, Diana finds out that he has sizeable investments in LexCorp and that he personally does millions of dollars' worth of businesses with Lex Luthor.

"This guy," Diana mutters as she taps her chin thoughtfully, "this guy just might be an in."

Maybe she'll run some further checks on him by herself. Maybe she'll even pay him a visit. Unlike the Amazons, where all missions were handed out, the League operated differently. Here, there was equal say and permission to operate independently within reason. Superman had even said so in the meeting. "Feel free to conduct your own investigations."

(Barry had asked "Even if they are on my ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend?" and everyone had laughed, except Superman who simply smiled and shook his head.)

Diana smiles and stands up with purpose.

She just might not regret her decision to leave the Amazons and her past behind, after all.

A/N 2: I love reviews, people. My stories live and grow on them.