I had been caught in the cross fire. I had nowhere that I could run to, not now. I hunkered down behind a desk and waited as a group of men slunk by me, their leader obvious. He was taller than the rest of the men and much bulkier. He was obviously heavily muscled and the most memorable part of his character, the mask that covered most of the man's face. However it was not the mask that forced me down behind the desk, it was his obvious intent. He and his men were here for a specific reason and they would kill anyone that got in the way of achieving this mission. I had entered the stock exchange simply to watch these people clamber over each other for more earnings. I found it amusing. These people go about their lives, climbing over and stepping on each other to get one rung higher than the rest. The elders of society hard and weary, knowing now and understanding just how cruel the surrounding world is. The adults wanting more for themselves or their offspring. The young thinking the world is against them. And the youngest, too pure and too kind to understand how cruel their world is. There were however always the select few that stood apart from the rest. These were the ones that knew of hardship, that knew of the cruelty of such a world and had bounced back from the dark, the ones that could still see something beautiful in the world that they had come to know…and those that had given into the dark around them. Those that no longer believed in the good of the world, those that had known such hardship, injustice and cruelty that it had broken them.
Apparently, according to my mother, my job…my destiny was to repair such people. But specifically the man I would come to love, would need my help…not to 'fix' him but to make him see.

I watched the group over a stack of papers, the mercenaries firing at random. The leader came forward and lead a man to a desk, knocking him unconscious and using his ID to hack the system. I quirked the corner of my mouth, he was efficient, I'd give him that. The masked man turned after speaking with his personal hacker "Time to go mobile." I grinned as I watched. Whilst I might be one for justice, I also found enjoyment in a little misbehaviour every now and then. Besides, Gotham was not a city with one that wished ill-will on the innocent, it was corrupt and only a few residents retained that purity I protected. And for one such as myself, finding amusement was hard to do. My mind often a dark and twisted place and the prospect of something even mildly different from my routine would catch my attention. This masked menace had certainly achieved as such.

The group took to motorbikes and sped from the scene, myself taking to the shadows. I followed the masked man until I lost him in an alleyway. He must have realized he had someone tailing him. I spun in a circle, there was nowhere he could have gone but back out the alley and past me. I would have noticed someone of his size if they tried to slip past. I heard a metallic clunk and lifted my boot, seeing the manhole cover that had slipped into place when I stepped on it.
I grimaced "Really? A sewer? Why is it always sewers? Why can't it be a nice apartment for once?" I lifted the cover and peered into the dark hole, wincing as the stench of the sewers reached my sensitive nose "Aw man." I jumped down and landed with a horrible squishing sound. I shuddered. I had seen some horrible things in my life but being in a sewer was gross. I rolled my eyes and sighed heavily, beginning my walk through the maze of tunnels.
I rounded a corner and came to an abrupt halt, seeing an underground civilization at work. Men trudged through the large alcove and throughout the tunnels, armed and ready for war. I gave an appreciative nod and continued through, not bothered by the eyes that began to follow me. One man stepped out to block my path "Hey there, doll." He sneered down at me, which wasn't far. I reached just under his eyes and the man was roughly six foot, three. I rolled my eyes "Not going to happen, love."
He quirked a brow and stepped closer "Oh really? Because there isn't anyone here to help you, little doll."
He reached out to a strand of dark hair that had come loose from my braid. He didn't pay heed to the warning I gave him. I growled deeply and snapped my teeth at his fingers. He pulled back quickly and stepped away. I nodded "Wise choice." My voice had lowered in pitch. I grinned then and continued my exploration. I made my way through tunnels and large alcoves before coming to what looked like the main base for these men. I walked the corridors and stopped only when I reached a group of men surrounding a map, spread over a desk. One man in particular stood out from the rest, the leader. I stilled completely as he turned to face me. He caught my gaze and studied me carefully "And what brings you down here?" The mask distorted his voice. There was such strength and….power that seemed to leak from his very being, to lap against my skin. I forced myself not to shudder. His men did not frighten me, those mercenaries I could handle. But him? He could snap my neck with a flex of his hand.
"Curiosity." My voice was a lot stronger and surer than I felt.
He chuckled "You know what they say about curiosity and the cat, yes?" He walked circles around me, inspecting me, "You must be either very brave…or very stupid to enter these tunnels." Having him at my back…my unprotected back, made me want to spin to face him. I felt like the ant under the magnifying glass.
"Yeah well, either way, here I am." I shrugged and the tightening around his eyes told me he was smiling under the mask. He stopped walking "You are not afraid?"
"I'm terrified." I saw no reason to lie. He would possibly have over one hundred pounds on me, he was obviously far stronger and held more ferocity when he fought. He nodded slowly "You are smart." Now he was just being condescending. I frowned but said nothing. My tolerance for patronizing behaviour or condescension was nil. However, my will to live outweighed any dispositions I may have had. He circled to the front and cocked his head to the side "Perhaps…there may be some use for you after all." I felt a sharp blow to the back of my head, black consumed my sight. As my body crumpled to the floor and my mind went numb, I had time for one last thought. Fuck.

When I woke, my head felt like it had church bells in it. I opened my eyes slowly and hissed when a bright light blinded me. I turned my head quickly, squeezing my eyes shut and immediately regretted the harsh movement. I groaned and tried to push myself into a sitting position but failed when a large and warm hand landed gently but firmly on my shoulder and pushed me back down. I opened my eyes once more, more slowly this time and found myself looking into piercing grey eyes. I gasped when I realized just who it was that I was looking at. The mask hissed lightly as he breathed, he was simply studying me.
Forgetting the pounding in my skull, I all but threw myself off the cot and lifted myself to my feet. I spun to face him, light on the balls of my feet and in a half crouch. I was ready to defend myself, should I need to. It was second nature to me now.
He stood from the cot and took a step toward me in the small room. I tensed and he stopped moving, raising his hands with his palms facing out. I took a moment to glance around the room. It was bare, save for the cot in one corner. I looked back to the man mountain in front of me and noticed he had edged closer. My breathing grew shallow and silent, my senses sharper than even they were day-to-day. I didn't understand how someone so big could be so silent. I stepped back, increasing the space between us should I need to run. He kept his hands up, a show of surrender "Come now. I'm not going to hurt you."
I fought the urge to laugh "Oh right, because I'm going to believe that after you knocked me out."
"My men can get a little…overzealous." He didn't lower his hands, as though I was a skittish animal he was trying to corner and calm. But what he didn't seem to know was that a cornered wolf was infinitely more dangerous than a wolf free to run. "I can assure you that at this time, there is no plan to harm you." Not guaranteeing my safety whilst I was with this group, should I stay, but telling me that he did not plan to hurt me…not yet.
"And why – exactly – am I being held here?" There was no use for me here. This man was preparing for war. Whilst I was a fighter in my own right, I was not one for war on people that may not necessarily deserve it. The people of Gotham were not innocent people, but that did not mean they deserved to have such wrath rain down upon them.
"You intrigue me. And that, my dear, is a rare quality in most of you." He still kept his stance, "And you can be of use to me." I knew that was all I would get for an explanation. He gave assurance that he would not harm me and had no intention of harming me as of yet. If I proved to be useful and continued to fascinate him, I would live. That I could certainly do. I forced my body to relax, muscle by muscle and stood upright. As I straightened my spine I questioned the man before me "Your name?"
He chuckled "I am Bane."
"Rayne." I looked around me once more, ignoring Bane when he moved closer, "Where are we?"
"We are still at the base you entered, this is where you will sleep." He walked to the door behind him and walked out, glancing back at me. I assumed that meant I was supposed to follow him, so I did. I moved quickly but did not run to catch Bane. If the men of this base saw me using Bane, so outwardly as protection then I would not be safe by any means when alone. If I was going to survive here, I could not betray weakness so openly.