Year One #1: Nightwing
By George Jones (Nightwing, Action Comics)
Dick Grayson sped away from Wayne Manor on his motorcycle. The rain raced down Dick's helmet visor as Bruce stood at the end of the driveway watching helplessly as his former protégé disappeared into the night. Dick didn't look back.
The com-link flashed on Dick's motorcycle.
"Master Richard, please reconsider your decision to leave, I know Bruce can be…"
Dick reached down and ripped the device from his bike and threw it away behind him as Wayne Manor became a mere speck in the distance. A solo tear ran down his cheek. There was no going back now.
Later that night…
Dick parked his bike behind the dingy, run down hotel and made his way with his bag slung over his shoulder to the main desk. Here, he found the hotel owner; fat and stinking of cigarettes and whiskey. He was sat leaned back reading a newspaper.
"Any vacancies for the night?"
"What do you think kid? $20"
Dick reached into his pocket and placed a 20 on the counter. The hotel owner threw Dick a key and went back to reading his paper.
"Top floor, first on your left"
"Service with a smile…"
"What's that kid?"
Dick turned and made his way to his room. Once he arrived, Dick threw his bag on the floor, turned on the small TV set and sat on top of the bed.
(TV) "For the first time in 7 years, Haly's circus returns to Gotham for one night only! Come and witness the amazing feats of 'Gregor the Lion Tamer'! Singh the Indian strongman! And Melissa the mistress of magic! Friday the 15th! 52nd street, Park Row! Tickets available on the gate"
Later…
The snow had begun to fall on Gotham as Dick sat alone atop the roof of the hotel. He breathed into his cupped hands trying to get warm. He couldn't stand the smell inside his room.
"You should really go inside to warm up…"
Dick looked around sharply. Superman stood behind him, the man of steel walked over and sat next to Dick.
"…What ups kid? You have a fight with Bruce?"
"Probably, otherwise I wouldn't be sitting here"
"Fair point, if you need somewhere to stay, I'm sure I can make room for you"
"Thanks but I can't. Sometimes he just makes me wanna strangle him…"
"Trust me, I know the feeling. So what's happened with you guys?"
"It's not just one thing. It's been building up for a while. I tell him I don't want to be Robin, he doesn't listen. I tell him I want to be my own person, he doesn't listen and then I found out Bruce knew about the guy who killed Tony Zucco and didn't tell me about it. When Jason went missing a while back, Bruce didn't even bother to go looking for him.I just don't know what to do anymore"
Superman placed his arm around Dick's shoulders.
"Did I ever tell you about a man named Van-Zee?"
"No? I don't think so"
"Kandorian legend has it that Van-Zee was born into one of Krypton's greatest families. The story goes that after the death of his father, Van's older brother cast him out and took power for himself. Van was now alone, he could easily have felt sorry for himself, but he found his inner strength and the will not to give up.
He created himself a costume and called himself Nightwing. He battled the forces of crime on Kandor and soon had a partner named Flamebird. Together they brought down Van-Zee's brother and Van reclaimed his father's honour"
Dick looked up at Clark and smiled.
Elsewhere…
Timothy 'Tim' Drake lay on his bed watching the news.
(TV)
"Commissioner Gordon, can you confirm the sightings of the mysterious alligator man living inside Gotham's sewers?"
"There is no such thing as the alligator man, croc man or whatever you guys have called him, living beneath the city"
"Gordon! Did the GCPD use the assistance of Batman to bring in Killer Moth?"
"The GCPD works inside the law; official policy is to arrest Batman on sight"
"So what's that searchlight atop of the GCPD building doing?"
"Please let me through, can I do my job…"
"Thanks for that report Rachael; that is all the Police Commissioner had to say on Gotham's notorious alligator man. Here at channel 6 news, we are happy to hear from you about sightings of any ghouls, ghosts or 6 ft Bats."
Tim turned off the TV and began to ponder.
The next day
Wayne Enterprises R&D department
Dick Grayson walked into Lucius Fox's extensive research lab.
"Lucius I need your help, I need some new gear"
"Bruce didn't say anything about…"
"You haven't heard have you?"
"About what?"
"We're not exactly on speaking terms at the moment"
"I see"
"I understand if you say no, I just really need some help"
"I might just have something you may like"
Dick smiled. Lucius pressed a button on a holographic control panel, two floor sections opened up and a large metal frame rose from the ground, from the frame was suspended a black armored suit.
"Our newest model, the whole thing is tripled weaved Kevlar covered but has fewer layers to what your used to, this enables better capacity for motion. The suit is insulated for protection against electricity, fire resistance and it employs new nano optic light sensitive fibers. This particular model was originally intended for the Marines whilst on spec ops missions however the contract fell through before it could be finalized"
"If it's all the same I'd rather Bruce not know about-"
"I already showed Bruce this; he didn't care much for the less protective, more agile approach…"
Lucius reached for a metal briefcase and opened it up.
"…These might also interest you, state of the art 'Escrima Sticks'. Electrically charged and very tough, military grade smoke pellets and shuriken style throwing blades and as seeing as this is a suit designed for the Marines, it doesn't fit the attachment of a 'cape'"
Dick smiled.
"I never did like those things anyway, always got in the way"
"Can't say I ever field tested one myself"
"One question…"
Lucius nodded, Dick pointed do the suits chest pieces.
"…Can I get these bits in blue?"
The cab pulled up outside the circus tent. Dick got out and gave the driver the fare. He hadn't been back here since that night. The night that it all changed, the crowds were pouring into the big top, the noise of the drums could be heard from outside where he was.
Dick went in and took to his seat. The noise of the crowd was deafening, the beats of the drums went straight through Dick's chest. He felt nauseous and couldn't focus. Then it all came back. That night flashed before his eyes…
7 Years ago...
"Welcome Ladies, Gentlemen & Children of all ages! You are in for a treat tonight! Halys' circus proudly presents to you the world's greatest performers willing to attempt death defying feats for your paying amusement! Will you all please bring your hands together for John, Mary and little Richard…THE FLYING GRAYSONS!..."
The lights swung to the trapeze podium where the 3 performers stood, they waved to the adoring crowd.
"Are you ready Richard?"
"Yes dad"
The crowd dyed down in great anticipation.
John Grayson took grip of the trapeze bar and swung across to the other podium; followed by Mary who grabbed the other bar and plunged off the podium herself; at the same time John swung back also. Mary released her grip and in mid air grabbed her husband's hands. The crowd roared into applause. John and Mary flew back and they both landed on the podium opposite to Dick. The two performers waved to the crowd.
John and Richard then swung down in tandem. Dick released, performed a somersault and grabbed his father's hands in mid air. The duo father & son act successfully landed back on the podium opposite to Mary.
The noise of the crowd seemed to become even greater.
John and Mary both elegantly flew off their podiums. Dick closed his eyes. He opened them and it was over. Their bodies lay outstretched on the floor. The sabotaged trapeze rope swung torn for all to see. The crowd was silent in shock. Tears began to fall from Richard's eyes as he slumped to his knees…
Now...
"Welcome Ladies, Gentlemen & Children of all ages! You are in for a treat tonight! Halys' circus proudly presents to you the world's greatest performers willing to attempt death defying feats for your paying amusement!..."
Sweat began to fall from Dick's forehead, his eyes darted around frenzied; he stood up and stumbled out of the tent. The pain was still fresh. The pain was still real. He crossed the road and walked into a near by alley and vomited. Dick then slumped to his knees and began to cry.
The sewer cover was lifted out of the way; Tim Drake dropped several glow sticks down the hole to guide his descent. A rucksack was slung over his shoulder and a flashlight was held in one hand. The stories of the monster man who lived in the sewers intrigued his young mind and he came to find out for himself. Tim lowered himself down and used the rusty ladder to aid his descent.
The smell was overpowering, Tim had to breathe through his mouth to prevent him from vomiting. The young man reached the bottom, his foot landed in a puddle of slimy water. Tim illuminated the claustrophobic sewer passage with his flashlight and began his journey into the unknown…
24Hours later…
Dick Grayson sat on his stationary motorcycle; he tuned the radio receptor on his bike to the police callout frequency.
(Radio)
'This zzzzzzzz we have zzzzzz report of zz missing child. Witness has reported in seeing a boy who fits the description entering the sewers located under the Narrows. Any cars in the vicinity please respond…"
Dick Grayson hopped off his bike and opened up the compartment under his seat. Time to field test his new equipment.
Gotham Narrows.
Dick Grayson stood atop a snowy rooftop overlooking the sewer cover that Tim had left open. Dick was wearing the suit that Lucius had given him. It felt good, it felt lighter and Dick liked it. For the first time, Dick had gone out without wearing a cape; he had always felt it weighed him down but Bruce never listened. The young man inspected his new escrima sticks one more time and leapt down from the rooftop.
Gotham Narrows' Sewers
Tim awoke from his unconscious state, he felt something tight around his body. Tim was tied to a chair, wrapped in thick rope. A lone light bulb flickered above his head and lit the large abandoned engineer room. The floor was crawling with what appeared to be hundreds of large sewer rats…
"What the hell-"
"Rats"
The tall skinny figure emerged from out of the darkness.
"Who who are you…"
"I'm the Ratcatcher and this is my humble army"
"Please don't hurt me…"
"Oooh I won't hurt you but HE might if he hears you. If you awaken the beast, you'll regret it"
A lone batarang struck the light bulb, shattering it into pieces and plunging the room into darkness. A voice came from out of the shadows…
"Ha-ha! The Ratcatcher? Give me a break…"
"Shut up! Stop talking!"
"Wow, it would be kinda funny if wasn't so pathetic. Ha-ha!"
"Stop laughing at me! He'll hear you! He'll hear you!"
An animalistic roar came from the distance, followed by the thumping of humongous footsteps.
Under the cover of the darkness, Dick sliced Tim free of the ropes with a batarang. Dick threw the boy over his shoulder and made his way towards the sewer exit. The silence was interrupted with a deafening thud, a gargantuan green scaly fist punched through the furthest wall. Breaking through the hard brick with ease.
"YOU FOOL! YOU AWOKE HIM!"
Dick and Tim continued down sewer passage, his first priority was to save the boy. The Ratcatcher activated a button on his wrist device; his army of sewer rats launched themselves at the beast, covering his green scaly frame. The creature roared and tore the vermin from his body with his large claws.
"I'll EaT tHe FrEsH fROm youR BoNEs!"
The monster swung his giant claw into the chest of the Ratcatcher, sending him crashing across the room unconscious. The bones in his chest were completely crushed. The monster picked up the limp body of the Ratcatcher and tore his body in half. A shower of blood and intestines showered over the body of the brutal creature.
Meanwhile Dick hauled Tim out of the sewer and back to the surface.
"Listen to me kid, RUN"
Tim ran off into the darkness. Dick looked back down towards the sewer hole, the thumping footsteps were growing louder and louder. Dick was taken aback when half the semi eaten body of the Ratcatcher came flying out of the sewer hole and landed on the surface.
"Jesus-"
The beasts fists came crashing through the sewer hole, the creature crawled onto the surface. His body was dripping in human insides and slimy sewer water. Dick didn't hesitate and went on the offensive; however his escrima sticks had little effect on the beast. The animal stood up and swatted Dick like a fly; he was thrown across the road, crashing into a dumpster.
"EVerY KnOw aNd ThEn YoU coMe AcRoSs SoMeBodY YOu ShOULdn'T PIsS oFf! ANd I'M tHat GUY!"
Dick looked up that his opponent.
"I can see why you're pissed off; if I was a big mutated alligator man I'd be pretty pissed of too"
"NaMes CROC! kiLLaH CrOC!"
"Cute. Whose idea was that? Mummy?"
Killer Croc roared an almighty growl and charged at Dick, the young acrobat leapt over his opponent and struck him in the back of the knees. Croc felt nothing, swung around and punched Dick to the other side of the street.
"HA! pUny BoY!"
Croc leapt across the road and landed a devastating kick to Dick's chest. Croc then lifted him into the air and slammed him onto the ground back first. Dick stumbled to his knees but was quickly knocked back down with a thunderous head butt.
A voice came from above.
"Enough!"
Croc swung around and looked up. A lone female stood above. Shiva.
Shiva leapt down and landed a devastating spin kick to the side of the Croc's head. The beast stumbled backwards.
"BiTch!"
Shiva then delivered a series of hard strikes onto Killer Croc; Shiva's skills in martial arts gave her the advantage. Her thunderous attacks brought Croc to his knees.
"I never did like animals"
Shiva mustered all her strength and struck Croc with a kick to the head, a strike that would have taken a normal mans head clean off. Killer Croc slumped to the floor unconscious. Shiva then walked over to Dick and picked up his bloody and beaten body from the snowy floor.
"Word on the grapevine is that little Robin has flown the nest"
"I don't go by that name anymore"
"May I ask what you go by then?"
Dick looked up into Shiva's eyes.
"Nightwing"
"Think of that yourself?"
"I had help"
"I have to admit that I'm rather disappointed in you. You let yourself get complacent and almost killed. I fear my training failed to have long lasting effects on you"
Nightwing spat a thick mouthful of blood onto the snow.
"Well, you're welcome to leave me alone"
Shiva struck Nightwing in the back of the leg, sending his beaten body back to the floor.
"Bad mistake sister"
Nightwing flipped back onto his feet and swiped for Shiva's head with his escrima stick, Shiva intercepted the attack and dropped Dick back to the ground with a knee to the chest.
"Yes, you have made a bad mistake Robin"
"I won't tell you again…"
Nightwing rose again and landed a strike on Shiva.
"…It's Nightwing!"
Shiva side stepped Nightwings high kick and delivered a high kick of her own, opening up a gash above Dick's eye.
"Don't try it again; I can predict your strikes before you make them"
Shiva felt a deadly grip grasp her leg from behind. The Croc had awoken, Shiva swiveled her body around to face her attacker. She delivered a devastating open palm strike to Killer Crocs mouth, smashing several teeth; followed up by a knee thrust to the chin. With the Croc dealt with again, Shiva turned to face Nightwing. But he was gone.
Gotham Train Station
24hrs later
The bruised and sore Dick Grayson stood by the side of the platform with everything he owned slung over his shoulder inside a gym bag. Dick has sold his bike for cash, cash he needed for a deposit on an apartment. He had made up this mind, he was leaving. All that was left for him in Gotham was pain and regret. The train rolled into the station and stopped. He looked up at the front of the train.
'Blüdhaven'
Dick walked onto the train and didn't look back.