CHAPTER 1
She was still getting used to the cacophony of blaring horns, screeching sirens, and drunken wailing that relentlessly attacked the otherwise deathly cool silence of Gotham City Night. Most of her life was spent hiding in silence and darkness, so the noise was something fresh and new to her. Still, she took comfort in the blanket of shadows that the city provided her. She had been trained to use them as a means of escape, as well as a point of attack. But she had not come to Gotham to lurk in its shadows. She was seeking light.
'And the only one who can bring me into the light is the dark Knight.'
She smirked at the irony, but the curve of her smile drifted south when her mind wondered back to the very daunting task before her. She spent many nights wondering if she was truly ready for this. She had been trained in hand-to-hand combat since before she could remember. Her eyes drifted far into the distance as she thought about her childhood. A toy box filled with an array of swords, explosive, and other weapons. A playground with monkey bars built over sinking sand, slides leading to a pit of daggers, and robotic "playmates" shooting bullets. And a succession of "mothers", each of whom she got close enough to love them just before she was ripped from them, and thrown to another. Thankfully, they all taught her very well. She could, without a doubt, take down a man three times her size without the slightest bit of effort.
But tonight, she was not facing any ordinary man.
"Remember Aleila," her last mother told her, "arrogance, if given proper footing can defeat the greatest warrior." She felt she was heeding well to this advise by not having any expectations of defeating the Batman in combat. She doubted that her years of training, however excellent, would be a match for the batman's level of skill and experience. Lucky for her, winning a fight against the Batman wasn't her aim. All she needed was one good hit, and that would give her all the material she needed to hoist herself out of the pit of deception she had been born into.
"One Good hit" she mumbled to herself. "One good hit, then get the hell out of there."
She had been watching him make his rounds for several weeks now. He had a mastery of fear and shadows unlike anyone she had ever seen, taking down enemies without them even seeing him. And when they did see him, she could only imagine how sorely the wished they hadn't. A few nights ago, she witnessed him interrogating a goon involved in the murder of some local politician. The batman grabbed the quivering man by his collar and slammed him into a brick wall. He growled a question, to which he got an apparently acceptable answer. Even from her rooftop perch, Aleila could see the man had soiled himself.
He certainly had a very unique style, and obviously took pleasure in personalizing his weapons and machines. Batarangs, batcopter, batmobile, and the endless supply of gadgets in that signature utility belt. He without a doubt had a flare for theatrics.
After careful observation, she also discovered he had a fondness for a particular enclave of Gotham: Crime Alley. It was one of the few places he surveyed every single night, and he always seemed to linger there longer than his other stops. When she realized this, she knew it would be the perfect place to begin unraveling her own mystery.
Her target would be Marini's Jewelry Boutique. She had been disarming alarm systems and picking locks since she was old enough to reach them, but she decided she would make this look like a simple smash and grab. "If he thinks I'm an amateur, maybe for a moment he'll underestimate me…" she quietly hoped.
If the batman is on time, he'd be here just in time to hear the alarms go off. Aleila peered over the rooftop, and stared at the store, preparing herself for the night of her life. She slipped on her gloves, pinned back jet-black hair, and slowly slide a mask over her tensed face. "One good hit, then get the hell out of there" She breathed out, before rappelling down the building. She ran to near-buy garbage can, and with all her strength hurled it into the Jewelry store window. "Here goes everything," she thought as she stepped into the glass towards the counter.