I do not own the character to this story. I only own my OCs. If it is relatable to any other work then I'm sorry for your imagination having to put up with this.
The other characters and places are from the wonderful people from DC Comics. :)
A thank you to Ellie13x, you inspired my writing. :)
A cold night. This is not new in Gotham. The streets are slick with rain and the filth from humanity. A women cowers in front of a tall thickset man. "You would have thought, that if they were going to hit women, they would do it inside. But no lets just go outside, so everyone and their mother can hear her scream." A figure in shimmery grey-black spandex mutters to herself. The leather of her corsets heaving with her breathing. The black hair looks to be shaved on the top and sides, just leaving a strip of wild curly hair on the left side. Her suit ripples in the street light as she drops three stories onto the guys shoulders. She tucks and rolls and starts sprinting up the street to where she can no longer hear the other woman's screams. "Stupid Batman, makin' me work twice as hard." She mumbles
The costumed savior runs up the wall of an alley vaulting up onto the roof. Running straight into a tall broad chest. She yelps, then does the standard stop drop and roll, around his thick-set legs and gets tangled in a black cape. She twists and brings the Dark- Knight to his knees. Unluckily for her she was wrapped like a caterpillar.
"Errm, this is an awkward question. But could you unwrap me, pweease?" She pouts, knowing she sounds like a child. But still mockingly respectful. Don't make the man- bat angry Ibis dear! She thinks to herself.
He stands quickly. She rolls out of the cape. Batman pins her to the ground, pressing on her collar, luckily. "It could have been her neck." She thinks, slightly queasy with the thought of strangulation.
"What is your...name?" He growls into her face. Hoping for the intimidation factor to work in his favor.
"You can call me...Grex."
Ibis Crow pov
1999 The day he came into my life, was a normal college day. Classes were in the morning and homework went in to the late afternoon. I was going about the tedious process that women have gone through since the invention of hair pins. Twist the hair up, pull that obnoxious flip down. It's a process that my room mate did not understand. She, as usual, had been done and was about to barge her 5 foot 3 inch self in to drag my 5''6' form out of the shared bathroom.
"Five minutes!" I yell
"That's what you said five minutes ago" Alice says while thumping her head on the door.
"There, perfect!" I smile at my long wavy black hair, now perfect. My blue eyes highlight the edges of my knife's edge face.
Alice was my opposite in every way. Gorgeous blonde hair styled in an edgy pixie cut. Dark blue eyes next to my icy ones. She liked to think problems through, I acted on instinct. She was short and blond, I was the tall dark beauty, she got called the dreaded 'cute'. We often were compared to Sherlock and Watson.
We lived in a dinghy apartment just outside the Narrows. So technically it was safe. As safe as it gets in Gotham anyways. After classes we went off to our respective jobs, hers at the library and mine at the theater. I have always liked the acts. The putting on of masks that no one thinks twice abo ut. Tonight was "The Phantom of the Opera" a favorite of mine. I was director of the most important... Spotlight. People in drama were always confused when they asked what role I was. It's like they thought that the light was just attracted to them.
"What! There's a job for that?" The idiots asked of me.
Why have we not crushed them?
Shh, not now! I'll talk later.
I moved into Gotham thinking it would be a good change from Georgia. "You want some ruckus in the city, do you my dear' my father would chuckle when I told him my idea. Of course I was only 5 at the time. I knew nothing of life. I was innocent.
Not true, we knew... Enough.
Shh, I told you, later.
Us Crows have always been ramshackle in our planing skills. As I said before, all instinct.
Heading out the door always required a feat of gymnastics leaping over her pots and cats, my half unpacked boxes. Finally the door. The door. Our apartment door was not there at the beginning. I installed a dark green door into the empty frame when we moved in. It was the only door Alice and I could agree, sorta, on. It creaked on old hinges. But we were of the opinion that was a good thing. No one could ever sneak silently into the room.
It's loud enough to wake a dead dog.
Well yes, but that's not the point is it though.
Is there a point?
Outside the screaming door was the hallway. The paint was chipped on the stairwell down. But, it was still miles above the other apartments I had visited. Faded off white, now a dusty brown, paint lined the walls. The creaky wood stairs screeched as I run down them, nearly bowling over Alice. "Ahhhhhh!" I yelp dodging her slight form.
My mother always told me it was rude to not look while going down the stairs. My parents were from Georgia, people are polite in Georgia. I have excuses! I was only there till about second grade.
I think.
Yes. It sneers at me
Sometimes I wonder where you go off to in your head. Not to remember things like that.
You're there don't you know?
No, your mind is full of squiggles. The voice growls at me
Sometimes I miss Georgia, but not often. There was only one person there I could tolerate.
Johnny, 'Oh I miss you Johnny'
Shut up, please?
Crow and Crane sitting in a tree! K I S-
Shhhhhh!
People used to mock us. "Two love birds peckin' away at their books, they are".
Idiots.
Alice had stopped for the little lady that lives on our floor. I had to bounce off of the wall, to avoid collision, and landed in splits on the bottom of the stairs.
"Ow!" I whine, "haven't done that for a while!" I grunt as I pick myself up off the floor. I give a circus worthy bow to the two on the stairs. The ladies clapped enthusiastically for my performance. Alice and I walk to the door and wait for the bus.
The bus is mostly empty. The only people on are the regulars. The people we can mostly trust, kinda. You can't really trust anyone in Gotham. Even the police system is completely corrupt. Officers are paid by the mob. There are only a few 'clean' cops left.
Way different than Georgia in'it sweetheart. The voice smirks at me, if a voice could smirk.
Later I whine
Fine
"Ibis, you get off here!" Alice pushes me off into the dreary air that was Gotham.
The theater is a gigantic building, compared to the surrounding ones. It was around three story's but narrow for a theater. It fits about 150 people. The lights were on a catwalk at the back of the theater. I was the only person up there besides Greg. He's a new addition. People seem to think that it's not safe for a female to be by herself, so they assigned Greg to guard the entrance.
Like he's gonna do any good!
He's not that bad, I mean... No never mind.
Greg has slept though every single show, he at this point is just another tripping hazard. Which I guess is good. He sleeps at the top of the stairs so people would just fall over him if they try to sneak up on me. It's the only plus side to having him around.
Not true, he makes great brownies. It snickers
Yes, great brownies
Every show, Greg from the goodness of his great gut, brought homemade brownies. And lets me eat one. He normally eats the entire batch on his own. Unless he falls asleep before he finishes. That happens, rarely.
The first person I see when I walk inside is Denice. Now Denice is... nice.
She's a bitch.
Ok, she's nice, when she is not blaming me for blown fuses, empty seats and dust. Oh the horrors of... Dust. It is an old theater, so normal people expect dust. Especially people in this part of town. But if you so much as think the D word...
Nuclear war be upon you. Poof! And hey! Here the whale approach-eth!
What, really? How long have got till show?
About,
"Thirty minutes!" Denice bellowed at me, "thirty minutes till showing and our only spotlight," at this she stops glares at me and keeps on trucking forward, "decides it's a good idea to space out. Go! Get going! Up up up!" She squawks and herds me up the stairs, swatting me with a rolled up bulletin.
She turns around right as I trip over Greg. He just grunts at that.
I think his fat pads him.
Most definitely. Can we off him at least? Pwease? It pouts
No not yet. Maybe later. I try to appease the voice. Save the brownies!
Denice has not come charging up the stairs yet, but I decide not to test my luck and get the light warmed up.
The actors get their voices warmed up. All the cast has been picked wonderfully, Carlotta really fits the bill. She actually sings like that.
High, screechy, really annoying It asks innocently
I'm not deceived by the tone, I can see the 'toad' scene from the movie, flashing through its mind. With its own special touch of acid.
I must have spaced out again because when I look around a carefully wrapped brownie lay before me and the theater was full. Denice has not come back up though, that was a plus. The lights were warm and the stage is set. I look at Greg, he's not sleeping yet.
What a surprise!
"Whats the time, Greg?" I whisper
"Couple minutes till go time." He then nods off.
That was boring
Only a little bit.
The play was completely normal until the last act. Then things got a little wonky.
Christine and The Phantom had just done their Mexican standoff. Only this time he got a little hand-zy. Christine had to discreetly stomp on his foot. He let go, but started giggling instead of whimpering the next lines.
His face seemed to gleam whiter than normal and line of red was underneath his mask. There was also the problem with his voice it was almost nasally sounding. They walked up the stairs on to the higher platform. He just strutted up the stairs instead of the smooth pace he normally has.
Something's very wrong.
Look at him!
What? What's wrong with him?
NOW!
'Christine' had started screaming. It was high and very loud. She pushed the man away from her. He spun to lear at the crowd, this person was definitely not Mark. Mark didn't have long scars, stretching from the edges of his mouth. A sick twisted laugh cracked through the theater.
"What? You guys don-t like my smile?" He snarls, popping the T. He started strutting down the stairs, leaving a paralyzed 'Christine' on the platform. Unconsciously I keep the spotlight on him. He seems to like that, and stretches the gruesome smile up in my direction. A shiver makes its way down my spine. This man hasn't done a thing and is still so utterly-
Wrong, he's wrong can't you feel it? Leave before he notices! Run!
I have learned it is always best to listen to the voice. Only rarely is it wrong. I turn to go down the stairs. I have completely forgotten about Greg, so when I find myself flying down the stairs it is a shock to the system. The bottom the the stairs comes closer. I do the only thing I can, try to curl into a ball and roll. There is no room to roll however, and I land on my back and slam into the wall.
"Oooh little bird tried to fly away did i-t now?" The man with his fake smile walked over to me, twittering at the beginning and ending in a growl.
I can only whine as he bends over me. Blood leaks out of my nose, and my vision flickers.
"She's a loo-k-er, ain't she!"
He picks me up and throws me over his shoulder, as if I was a sack of flour. "Wellll this was great f-un and all, but I'm gonna sk-eeedaddle."
I notice the amount of blood dripping off his cape, splattered on his shirt, on his pants.
Eeew
I notice the screams finally, so he probably only killed a few people, hopefully. He walks to the exit.
Move! It yells at me almost...frantic
Why, we're just moving?
Cause he's taking us with him!
Oh!.
I try frantically to wriggle out of his grip. The only thing my tried body accomplished was elbowing the back of his head. It wasn't very hard but it still got a reaction out of the man. He growled and dropped me back on to the floor. My head hit the floor with a wet sounding thump. My vision started to flicker again.
"Oh noooo Th-at won't do a-t allll!" He exclaims right before I passed out.