Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. That was the only sound he heard, alone in the cave.

That was the way it had been in his life for the past 5 months. Of course Bruce Wayne made many appearances during those months; hosting lavish parties and crashing the parties he wasn't invited to, but as anyone who knew him, who really knew him, would know that "Bruce Wayne" was a facade. The most eligible bachelor in Gotham City was nothing more than the true mask of The Batman.

Slowly the powerful man stood from his meditation and walked over to a line of cases and looked at the suits that were in each one, each one bringing back memories. his original suit, his second suit, Dick Grayson's Robin outfit, Barbara Gordon's Batgirl outfit, Tim Drake's Robin suit, Nightwing's... He wondered where they all were now. Sort of. He had kept tabs on them after he had fired them those years ago when the Justice Lords took over. Dick had immediately discovered that hew as being watched and was somehow able to virtually disappear from the grid. Barbara chose to become a librarian at Gotham's public library, much to Batman's chagrin. And Tim? Tim went to live with his aunt and uncle. He would be starting high school in Bludhaven next year.

Batman moved on to the final case, a case that held the tired but honorable uniform of a long-time friend; Alfred. His most trusted friend, advisor, and ally had died one month before the Justice Lords were defeated. He died peacefully in his sleep and a small funeral was held for the man. Barbara, Tim, even Dick... they were all there for the first time, together, in two years. Not a word was spoken at the funeral, but the presence of all of them together to honor Alfred spoke volumes about the man's ability to draw them together.

Batman looked at his reflection in the glass of Alfred's case: soulless eyes, silver Bat emblem, a grey cape draped over his shoulders. Alfred did not support what the Justice Lords had done, but he cared for Batman's wounds even still. He never quit his job, he never complained, he just did his duty and still gave advice.

"I really could use some of that advice about now, old friend." Batman murmured to himself before walking back to the chair he had been in before and sitting down once again.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. That was the only sound he heard, alone in the cave.

The final school bell rang and students from Gotham High rushed out of their respective classes in a frenzy. Kimber, in a rush, must have knocked down five or six people before she arrived at her locker. "Finally! Winter, break!"She opened her locker quickly throwing in her backpack and then slamming the door shut.

"We-ell, you look excited." A senior boy leaned against the locker wall and faced Kimber. His name was on his letterman jacket and read "Mawk" in stylized letters. "Any plans for the first Saturday night of the break?"

"Yes." Kimber replied quickly. The city is busy that night.

Mawk smirked, "How about you change them and come to my winter bash?"

Kimber laughed and replied, "Please, how am I supposed to change plans made months ago for a party in two days?" She started to walk away and the boy chased after her just as she expected.

"You're a smart girl," Mawk started, " Im sure you will figure it out. Besides, if you don't come, people will start asking questions."

"Like what? Whether we are getting back together for the fifth time or not?"

"Exactly!" Mawk exclaimed, "We need to show from now whether or not we are available for next year... and hopefully you go out with me again because I am not too keen on that one girl stalking me."

Kimber smiled, "Chelsea?"

"Yeah, that one. Ugh, she is always staring at me... Give's me the willies!" He shivered for emphasis.

Kimber laughed, "Fine, we will see if I go. But don't blame me if I am late!"

Mawk kissed her forehead, "Promise I wont."

"Good, now how about giving me a ride home?"

His name was Curtis Reginald Orson Walker and he was panting heavily. He had been sleeping in his last class and had the unfortunate luck to have slept through the bell. As a result two students who sat near him and stolen his stuff; with one kid was his backpack, and the other had his laptop. He had just retrieved his backback and was now chasing the second kid. He needed the laptop back, it had sensitive information.

During the Justice Lords reign, he had joined up with a small-time resistance. The organization was short-lived because it was soon cut down by Batman and the Green Lantern. Most of the members had been sent to prison and were not released until last May, but Curtis had gotten away.

"Hey!" he shouted after the kid, "Give it back!" Why, oh why, didn't I delete that crap?

"You gotta catch me first! Oof!" The kid was not looking where he was going and crashed into another student. Without apologizing or bothering to pick up Curtis' laptop, the kid rushed off to get away from Curtis.

Thank goodness... Curtis thought as he approached his property and the fallen student. "Are you alright?" He picked up the laptop in one hand and helped the girl up with the other.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine," The girl brushed the dirt from her jeans and shirt. "That's your laptop?"

"Yeah, I fell asleep in the last class of the day." He smiled sheepishly.

The girl giggled, "That's never a good idea. My name is Kimber, by the way. Kimber Lee." She extended her hand in greeting.

Curtis reached out and gave it a small shake. "Kimberly?"

"No. Kimber. Lee" She punctuated the space, "Lee is my last name. My father is Japanese."

"Oh, Goren Lee?"

"Yep, the cop that got pounded in the face by Batman two and a half years ago," she sighed, "That's dad."

There was an awkward pause between the two; Kimber was waiting for Mawk to drive his car from the parking lot to the front of the school and Curtis wasn't about to leave the attractive brunette.

"So... what are you doing for break?" Curtis asked.

"Mawk's party probably," She replied without thinking. Then, still not thinking, she invited him.

"Oh, really? Sounds like fun, I suppose. Where will it be held?"

Damn. "Mawk's house, of course. This Saturday night... nine-ish." Just at that moment Mawk's car puled up. Better late than never. "I'll see you there, then?"

Curtis smiled and waved. He could tell that she was kicking herself internally for inviting him, but hey, a party's a party. "Sure will."

A/N: Alright so there is something I need to put out there. This story JUSTICE LORDS UNLIMITED is going to be more than one story. The reason for the gaps between the chapters even though they were both short is that I ended up reworking and extending the story. What does that mean? It means that instead of just one story, this is actually going to be in "Acts" and each "act" will be a submitted story. As of now there are three major acts to be written, this one is the First Act. Some acts will be long stories while others may be no more than 1-3 chapters, but this all depends on motivation and reviews/ So please read and review. kthxbai