Flipside
Death
Bruce Wayne walked out of his Manor with every intention of going to the circus that night.
Too bad Black Mask had other plans.
Bruce was just getting in his long black limo when he got a message from the Batcave. Word recognition software had picked up that Black Mask was discussing drugs and guns. He couldn't pass up a chance to put the man in jail, so he told Alfred to let the girl of the week know he was sick and ran to the Batcave.
In the large circus tent across town, Dick Grayson prepared to perform with his family. This was going to be his first show without a net, and he was very excited.
Batman left the Batcave to go stop Black Mask. They were using the cover of a group of monks to distribute guns and drugs around Gotham. Batman had been trying to find proof of the mobs illegal activities for months, and a successful bust would easily lock them away for a year.
The Flying Graysons swung gracefully across the top of the circus tent while doing their act. Dick powdered his hands and prepared to join them. His mother swung towards him and as he got ready to jump he noticed the wire was a bit more jumpy than normal. He hesitated, and the wire snapped.
Batman crushed his fist into the face of yet another thug. He had successfully tied up several of the leaders, but their hired help was another matter. In order for him to get out and the police to get in, he had to clear a path through the men. Black Mask had escaped, which was a let down, but he had made up for it with the others captured. Tonight had definitely gone well.
Dick crouched next to the crushed and bloody remains of his family. Sobs wracked his small figure. He had tried to tell the police about Zucco, but they didn't believe him. Batman hadn't even shown up to help. He was all alone. The police led him away, planning on taking him to the orphanage because there was nowhere else for him to go. Dick didn't care; his world was over. Tonight had gone so wrong.
Batman went home, content with himself. It wasn't until the next day that he heard the terrible news. His heart went out to the boy, but when he arrived at the orphanage he learned that Dick had run away in the night.
Dick crouched on a rooftop near the center of Gotham. He had been wandering Gotham for hours, looking high and low for Zucco. He finally tracked him down to a run down house at the edge of Gotham. He entered the building cautiously and found a handgun on the table by the door. He picked it up and continued deeper into the house.
What he found disgusted him.
Tony Zucco, the great mob boss, lay on a filthy mattress wearing nothing but his underwear. His chest was covered in hair, and a slight potbelly oozed over the side of the mattress.
This was the man who murdered his family. This slob was the cause of Dick's pain. Dick raised the gun and fired it straight into Zucco's head, then disappeared into the night.
The next day, Batman got a call from Commissioner Gordon. They had found Zucco dead in his home. No one knew why the man had been killed; most who were considered his enemies were too frightened by his guards to do anything about it.
But Batman knew. Somewhere, a scared little boy had killed this man to avenge the death of his parents. He knew, and he understood. He just had to find Dick now, before anyone else did.
Another new story for y'all. Hope you like it.
-Shadow