Disclaimer: You've all read them before, you'll read them again. I don't own any of these chars except those that I introduce in this. It'll be obvious when you meet em. DC owns the the rights to the Bat-Family, and I'm not going to contest it. Ever. That's just stupid. Kinda like putting your finger into an electrical sockit with the light on. I'm not making any money off the story, or the characters.
I also disclaim that I have a some semblance of intelligance in my head. For those of you who really know me, you know the truth.
End of Disclaimer.
The Darkness and the Knight, pt 1
The cold wind whipped in between the tall, dark buildings of the city. Very few chose to be out during this time of the night. The wind chill lowered the temperature to a chilly 20 degrees. He crouched in the warmth of his cape, keeping the heat near his body. The stakeout had progressed into its fourth hour. He didn't seem to mind. The binoculars pressed up against the eye slits of his cowl. The underground had informed him of a major heist going down at one of WayneTech's research facilities.
The rustling behind him reminded him that Robin was close. "I wish crooks and thieves would learn to be a bit more considerate of those of us who have homework to do," he grumbled under the wind.
The Batman remained vigilant of his watch of the building. So far, no lights or motion had occurred, with the exception of the security guards doing their patrol. His heartbeat slowed a bit more, as he returned to a restive state. The duo waited another few minutes, when an unmarked van pulled up to the side of the building. The Dark Knight produced a large "T" shaped device from the back of his belt, wrapping one hand around the top of it, with his thumb resting upon the firing switch. He peered a moment longer through the binoculars, as Robin readied himself.
The Batman's low voice penetrated the Boy Wonder; "Ten of them, all armed with guns." He quickly folded the binoculars up, returning them to their place in his belt. He stood, balancing unconsciously upon the narrow ledge, stretching his arm. He depressed the red button with his thumb. The grappling claw exploded from the end, followed by a strong cord. The claw embedded itself into the building's exterior, as Batman leapt from his place. He swung gracefully through the cold night air. Robin followed closely behind. The pair landed softly on the roof.
They moved quickly to the roof access door. The Batman produced a universal key from his utility belt. The door fell open in seconds. The rustle of wind and capes could be heard as the two leapt down the stairs. It took only the briefest of moments for the Detective to recall what the criminal element would be doing on his home turf: the poloran generator. The generator had just completed its preliminary testing. It would be used as an auxiliary power generator for scientific research outposts. The primary power source used would be solar power, while fossil fuels would be used as a back up.
In the back of his mind, Batman recalled when the designs were presented to Bruce Wayne. The engineers were proud of what the new generator would do. "It can produce a surplus of energy quickly enough, and store it long enough to power a large village for a month," they informed him.
The new generator combined with the recent theft of a new prototype argon laser from the Ventrex Corp. began to disturb him. At the moment, the Batman had no leads to the laser theft, and assumed that the theft of the laser and the attempted theft of the generator were related.
He reached the door, snapping himself out of his recall. The Dark Knight waited a moment as Robin took his place beside the door. The door barely opened, allowing two shadows to slide quietly behind other objects. Their precise movements allowed them to approach the two closest thugs. Human eyes could barely see the movement of the Detective's hand, as he chopped at the thug's neck, dropping the would-be thief instantly. Robin's movements mirrored those of his mentor.
Commands to move the container echoed throughout the chamber. "Come on, you slackers! Put your backs into it! The last thing we need is the Bat falling down on this operation. The boss would be really happy with us then!" Bellowed out a well-dressed man. The forklift groaned and moaned as it moved. The prongs carrying the palate with the generator safely strapped down. The motor hummed as the driver manipulated the controls to get into position to deliver the cargo to the waiting van outside.
Gunmen littered the area. The Batman counted out all the men as he had done when they first pulled up. He mentally tracked their positions, devising the best method for taking them down hard and fast. The Dark Knight spotted a movement he hadn't seen earlier. A woman struggled inside the van against nylon bonds. He motioned with one hand to Robin, indicating this had not been the evening's first major criminal event. Robin mouthed a curse. Just as Robin began to make his way around the other crates towards the van, machine gunfire riddled against the crates and floor where the duo was.
Both split up quickly. The Batman taking down the gunman with a flying kick to the chest. The criminal flew a few feet back, slamming against the back wall, as his weapon fell to the floor. The Batman turned quickly, his cape wrapping around him. He spotted Robin making his way around. "Stop the Bat!" Bellowed the chief thug.
The Detective narrowed his eyes, calculating each criminal's movement. One hand flashed, as several shirkins left his black gloved hand. The shirkins hit their mark with a shrike of pain from those that dared to raise a weapon against the Dark Knight. The guns clanged against the floor, as Batman's arm retreated within the confines of his cape. Two of the less wounded crooks rushed towards him, bellowing out an urban war chant. Before they had even taken their first steps towards him, the Batman had chosen the method that he would bring these would-be attackers down.
His hand slipped between the opening of his cape, throwing a bolo. The bolo quickly wrapped around the legs of his attackers, slamming their heads together, knocking them out. Robin moved carefully and quietly, making sure that no one saw him approach the van. Batman was making sure to draw all attention on himself. "Freeze, dirt bags!" His gruff voice echoed out. The man running the operation pulled a .9mm weapon, leveling it at Batman. Thinking twice, he makes a dash to the van. Robin already know his moves were too slow, when the thug grabs the woman, and two other gunmen put their backs towards their boss.
"I don't think so, batboy," laughed out the crook. "It's really simple, even for you." Batman was already in motion when the gun leveled against the woman's ribcage. "Let's just drop the heroics for one night, shall we? You are going to let us go, with the generator, otherwise, this woman is going to be breathing with an iron lung. And make sure you call back your little bird boy, too."
Batman's mind continued to analyze the situation. "Robin," he relented, "Back off."
The wild haired young man stood up from behind a low crate. A look of utter disgust crossed his youthful features. He folded his arms across his chest. Batman remained motionless, as the criminals began moving the forklift back into position. The Dark Knight studied the scene like a hawk. The three gunmen surrounded the hostage, backing their way into the van. "Nice and steady, Bats. Don't get any wild ideas."
"Wild ideas? You mean like this?" A dark voice boasted from the entryway, near the van. There was a black flash as a heavy black boot kicked one of the men surrounding the young lady. He dropped instantly to the ground, the gun crumbling with him. The long black hair was pulled back in a tail, resting at his back. "Surprise!" Chuckled Nightwing. His heavy-gloved hands flashed, disarming the leader first, the other sent the second guard into dreamland.
The Batman moved in a flash, as his former partner moved the woman out of danger quickly. Robin moved quickly, taking the nearest gunman out in a flash. Batman moved from gun to gun, as the bullets rained around him. It took only two minutes for the duo to foil the robbery attempt. Nightwing had freed the young lady from her bonds, and contact the GCPD. Gordon will be interested in what these lowlifes have to say. One of the crooks started to come around from the pounding the Detective had given him. He approached the crook. Robin and Nightwing surrounded the Batman.
He reached down, grabbing the shirt collar of the man, lifting him easily off the ground. "Who do you work for, dirt bag!" Demanded the dark form.
"W-w-what are you talking about?" The terrified man blurted out. Robin and Nightwing looked to each other, knowing what was about to come next.
The Batman lowered his voice, and narrowed his eyes. His form grew darker and far more menacing than the crook had ever seen, even in his worst nightmares. "You have one more chance, slime, before I get angry!"
Robin and Nightwing turned around, and began to handcuff the other gunmen and crooks. They had both seen this one too many times in their careers as the Batman's partner. The Batman walked to the entryway, dragging the man behind him, kicking and screaming. He pulled the launcher from his belt, firing upwards toward the top of the building. The cord pulled the two upward at a great speed. The cord stopped, as Batman held diligently to the dangly man, as he continued to shriek in terror.
It was a few minutes later, Batman brought the criminal down near a group of police. They quickly surround him, handcuffing him. The Detective spots Jim Gordon talking to Robin and Nightwing. "What did you get from him?" The Commissioner inquired of the vigilante.
The dark figure frowned. "This wasn't the real target. It was a set up." His cape rustled lightly in the cold wind. "It was designed to keep me away from the primary objective."
Nightwing had matched the stance of his mentor. "What was the primary target then?"
Gordon shook his head. "We may not find that out until the morning, I'm afraid." His frown matched that of the Dark Knight. "What's our next move then, Batman?"
The Batman pulled back the grappling launcher from his belt; Robin and Nightwing matched his movement. "I have some other leads I can follow. I'll keep you posted." There was a triple explosion, as three grappling claws caught something out of sight. The three figures flew out of site on the dark cords.
"Good luck," muttered the flustered Gordon.
A few moments later, the three figures stood overlooking Gotham City. "What do you think they were after?" Nightwing finally asked.
Batman's grim voice was dark and biting back his anger, "I'm not sure, Nightwing. The information given seemed more like nonsense, then the plans of a criminal mastermind. Several of those thugs were homeless men that were just paid to stand around and hold guns."
Robin made his voice heard. "But, why would someone go to all that trouble just to pull off a fake heist?"
The Dark Knight stepped closer to the ledge. "It's not just the problem of pulling off a fake robbery, but who has enough power in Gotham's underground to feed enough false information to hide what was really happening."
The cold wind whistled through the buildings as the three forms stood there in the night. The Dark Knight's cape rolled silently in the wind as he watched over his domain. "We are going to need to work fast, and find a different source of information on this one."
Nightwing nodded promptly, "I agree, but the question is, where and who can provide this source."
Robin cautiously voiced, "Oracle?"
"She can get us the contacts, the problem remains, will they be reliable," Batman responded quietly. "She has no control on how accurate the information is that the contact will give us."
"No, but she can get us in," Nightwing sounded, as a smug smile formed on his lips.
The Detective turned around to face the former Boy Wonder. "Matches," he nodded in agreement.
Robin grinned a bit, understanding the plan forming. A police siren in the distance of the city forced the threesome to return to their duties of the night.
The next night, the wind howled through the darkened city. Forgotten newspapers and empty cans bustled through the evening streets. The few people still on the street at the late hour hugged themselves close with their coats, holding their hats in place. Down a poorly light back alley, several huddled forms cursed and argued. The door they fought over, shoved open with a clang. The group quickly pushed their way in, as a shadow watched the events take place. A ball of light formed against the wall as someone turned on a flashlight. Crates littered the storage room. The hidden figures panned out through the room, prying open crate tops.
The rustling of metal against wood shadowed over the cursing of the intruders. Finally, one asked the other, "What exactly are we looking for, Frankie?"
"All the boss said was we would know it when we see it, Mark," a shadowed form responded, as he opened another create.
"Perhaps," a low voice rumbled, "Your boss should hire smarter men." All the figures turned to face the opened door. "Or he should have come looking for it himself," A black form said, his arms folded behind him.
"Who the hell are you?" Growled one of the larger thugs in the room, pulling his crowbar into a fighting position. "And what business is it of yours that we are here?"
You could hear the chill in his voice as he smiled and spoke: "Me? Why, I'm the man that's going to find your little item. After you're dead of course."
That was the signal! Through the doorway poured 5 men, all carrying guns in the shadows, as they began shooting the other shadowed forms. Bullets ricocheted off the walls and beams. Flashlights fell to the ground with such a clutter, as the screams of death echoed into the night.
A burst of light into the room only got a groan from the room's occupant. "Come now, Master Bruce. It's time to get up," the butler informed. Alfred cleared the dirty clothes from the last night off the bed.
Another groan from Bruce Wayne echoed out, as he pulled the covers over his head. "Alfred, unless the city is coming to an end, I don't want to get out of bed."
Alfred frowned slightly. His English accent light as he spoke. "Master Bruce, perhaps this is the moment to remind you of your meeting today with Alex Brennan."
Bruce pulled the covers down, squinting in the light. "Thank you, Alfred. Would you lay out a suit for me, and bring the car around."
"Only after you have some breakfast, Master Bruce." Alfred moved a tray to the bed. Bruce inhaled lightly, taking in the smell of warm pancakes and toast. The orange juice was fresh, and the milk ice cold. A breakfast fit for a king. Or a Knight. Bruce slowly dug into the delicious smelling food. Alfred always remembered what he needed to get moving in the mornings.
Especially when it was the early afternoon.
When he had completed his breakfast, he moved to the bathroom, where Alfred had readied the shower. The warm water caressed his slightly aching form. The information from last night's foiled robbery hung in his mind. He analyzed every detail. Including the fact that some of the gunman had been homeless men off the street. His eyes closed, hanging his head in the downstream of the water. He finished his shower, stepping out to dress.
As good as his word, Alfred had laid out the perfect suit for the meeting with Brennan. He also had placed a few press releases from Brennan's company, InfiniTech. They had released the technical specs on several new networking and stationary computers. Bruce briefly considered a couple of those machines would assist in the cave, but thought better of it.
After all, Brennan was looking to cut an alliance with WayneTech. It would be a major move for such a young company. Though, from the releases, Brennan had moved the company into a position to succeed. Bruce finished dressing about the time that Alfred entered the bedroom and announced, "The car is ready, Master Bruce. There is also a call from Master Dick on line one."
Bruce's brow furrowed a bit. "Did he say what he needed?" He asked, walking to the phone.
"No, Master Bruce. Though, he did say it involved your after hour work schedule," the butler responded.
Bruce quickly picked up the phone. "Dick." His voice was low, as if Batman were standing there, and not Bruce Wayne.
"Bruce, I've been talking with Barbara, and we may have come up with a couple of leads. Also, a gang murder was reported this morning from a storage facility over on the East Side. Several of the weapon casings match dead on from last night's visit to WayneTech," Dick informed.
Bruce grumbled darkly, "Get as much information as you can out of the police computer. Meet me tonight at Gordon's office." He then hung up the phone without another word. Bruce quietly and swiftly walked out the door, still carrying the press releases.
The meeting ended up being more of a mid-afternoon business party. Several other representatives from other high-tech firms and companies were there. Most of them wanted to con money from Bruce. Some to see what was going on with the WayneTech development department. All of them making Bruce sick. Corporate games at its peak. Bruce played the playboy ever so well. Several female invitees wandered to him, trying to get his affections, or his attention.
Or his wallet.
Wayne money also came with instant prestige, power, and influence. And was, as far as anyone could tell, quite bottomless. Bruce was disgusted with himself when he acted like this. But, the Bruce Wayne disguise was sometimes the best way for the Batman to get important information. He flirted with the women as they came to him. He talked with them for a moment or two, until Fox approached him. Lucious Fox was the COO of Wayne Enterprises. Bruce felt he was the best choice for the job, as did his father before him.
Lucious walked over to Bruce, resting his hand on his shoulder. "Bruce, Alex Brennan just showed up at the front door."
Bruce looked towards that direction, seeing whom he could see. His picture perfect memory snapping through images in his mind, looking for the recent picture he had seen of Brennan. There he was. The tall, athletic, blond, middle aged man. With a twin redheaded women on either side. They were ornaments that seemed to add to his instant success of InfiniTech. Bruce swallowed his disgust, as he walked towards the man.
Bruce's voice was light and warm as he extended his hand to Brennan. "Welcome, Mr. Brennan. I'm Bruce Wayne."
Brennan smiled his own smile, as he took Bruce's hand. "Hello, Mr. Wayne. I'm very happy to be here. I'm even more happy to be able to pitch my ideas to the head of Wayne Enterprises." The two red headed women just watched on from behind mirrored sunglasses. Their short black dresses barely covered them, as they walked.
Bruce led the three to a table just slightly out of the way, so that they could talk. "I was just refreshing myself with the latest press releases from your company, Mr. Brennan" Bruce started, settling into one of the chairs.
"Please, we are both men of great accomplishments, Bruce. Call me Alex," smiled Brennan as he settled himself. "Let's not so be formal about this. After all, this is just a preliminary meeting to see if you like what I have to offer."
Bruce's eyes darted to one of the women escorting Brennan. Alex noticed. "Ah, let me introduce you to Farrah, and Sarah. My personal body guards," a smile crossed his lips again. "Recently, there were several attempts on my life, and my chief of security felt that I needed to have some personal attention. Not only are they beautiful, they are quite deadly." Brennan looked at the two of them, before returning his gaze to Bruce.
Bruce only smiled back. "I can't count the number of attempts on my life. But, somehow, I've never felt the need for body guards."
"You live in Gotham. Gotham has her own body guard, as I have been informed."
Bruce leaned back in his chair, knowing exactly whom he's talking about. "But, the few reports that have been released only have the Batman out at night. He's hardly ever been seen in the day."
Brennan chuckled, as he leaned back in his own chair. A waiter asking for drink orders greeted the two. After which, the two businessmen continued to talk for a while, mainly Brennan talking about what he needed and what he could do for WayneTech. Bruce listened on quietly, nodding in all the right places, asking the right questions when Brennan stopped. His eyes however, watched the two women with a detective's eye. Each of the women carried a dagger just under their dresses, on either upper thigh.
The imprint was easy to trace for his eagle eye. Their stance more of an aggressive posture, then a defensive posture.
Something wasn't right.
"So, I think that an alliance between Wayne and InfiniTech would be extremely profitable, don't you think?" Brennan finished.
Bruce smiled lightly, and nodded. "Absolutely. The possibilities are endless." Bruce's eyes flicked over the two women. "What are they watching for?" He asked himself. He quickly returned his attention to the rambling Brennan.
"When can we sign those papers?" Brennan pressed.
Bruce smiled a disarming smile. "I'd like to do a little more research, if you don't mind, Alex." Bruce shifted a bit, to watch one of the women who had propositioned him. He swallowed his disgust once again at playing the playboy. He turned back to Brennan, "What may be better, is to talk to Mr. Fox. I'm sure you and he could work out an excellent deal. Lucious really is the man to talk to about this sort of thing, anyway."
Alex smiled briefly, as he took a drink of his wine. "Thank you much for your help, Bruce. This chance to just and sit and talk to you was very informative. I'll have my people set up a meeting with your Mr. Fox. I'm sure that he and I can come out to an excellent deal to land some new jobs, as well as get some fresh money into the Wayne fortune." Brennan finished his statement with a chuckle. Bruce chuckled along with him.
The party continued quietly. Bruce kept a subtle eye on the two escorts. They were either watching for something to happen, or waiting for something to happen. He wasn't sure. If they were truly bodyguards, they needed to take lessons on subtly from the mob guards that the Batman had taken down. There was something about them that still bothered him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
His thoughts of the two of women continued on into the night, as the Batmobile howled through the winter night once again. Perhaps it was Brennan himself that caused the investigation, and not the bodyguards.
In any case, there was something not right.
The police scanner squelched, "Robbery in progress at 57th and Harrison; all units respond; possible hostage situation."
Patrol was over; it was time for action. He throttled the turbine up, as the black car ripped through Gotham's streets. The computer plotted out the fastest route to the tower, as it displayed information on the buildings at that location: A health spa; A sandwich shop.
Bingo!
A software development company: NovaWare. It specialized in operating systems and configurations for robotics. WayneTech used them quite a bit, in contracting out specialized work.
The Batmobile slowed and stopped a few blocks away. The fewer people that knew he was coming, the better the surprise he would have. The canopy to the car slid open, as he stood. His hand dove under his cape, pulling out a grappling launcher. The hook fired into the night, latching onto something in the darkness.
He flew upwards, his cape spreading out behind him, making him appear to be a dark angel. He landed gently on the rooftop, the infrared visor already in hand. He looked down to the building in question. Twenty armed figures were scattered throughout the building. I looked to be six hostages on the third floor. He frowned to himself. His thoughts were on the other night's robbery attempt. Was this the real thing, or was this simply a tactic to get him away from the real target.
There was a sound behind him. "I didn't think you were still in Gotham," he said roughly.
"Something's going down. The last thing I need is for this to be bleeding over to the Haven," Nightwing responded.
The Dark Knight mearly nodded. "We've got twenty armed men scattered throughout the building, with seven in the same room with the 6 hostages. I can only guess what they are after, if they have it already or if they are a diversion like the other night."
"Plan?" Nightwing inquired, standing near the edge of the building, doing his own study.
"Two prong attack. Quick and silent. We don't need to endanger the hostages." Batman pulled the launcher from under his cape. "I'll take the top. Think you can handle the lower?"
Nightwing produced his own launcher. "I learned from the best, didn't I?" He smirked.
Batman didn't respond, as the two hooks fired off across the street. They both leapt from the building, avoiding the spotlights that were beginning to fire upwards from the police.
On the street, Gordon watched the building quietly. The wind whistled around him. The babble of the radio had been lost in the commotion of officers. The SWAT truck pulled up behind him, as men began to pour out of it. He looked up, as if hearing something. Noas if hearing some one. He smiled briefly to himself, a small flicker of hope rising.
He knew it was him.
He had heard that sound so many times, over so many years. In the blackest of moments, he always appeared, almost as if he were part of the darkness himself.
There was a solid thud against the rooftop; one of the would-be killers fell to the heavy boot of the Dark Knight. The cape whirled around his shoulders, hiding his form in darkness as if he had willed it to happen.
Nightwing's battles had ended the same way, on his trek through the building. A few pressed their luck with both fighters, only to meet a grim defeat at the expert hands.
They arrived at the doorway where the captives where held. The door quietly opened just enough to fit a small mirror on a slim stick through. Nightwing had taken all his skills, and added to those that the Batman taught him. "These guys are good. They have the hostages surrounded, with their backs to them. To make your night just that much more pleasant, they are wearing military grade gas masks. It also looks like there are three of them against the windows, their guns aimed on the hostages." The mirror slide back, as Nightwing stood to face his frowning mentor.
"There's something not right here," was the last thing the Batman said before everything went dark.
TO BE CONTINUED