Chapter 2

Bruce picked his head off the desk table, his eyes downcast as he swiveled in his chair towards the window, his eyes watching the citizens of London as they scurried about their lives, unaware of the tragedies that could befall them at any time.

Anytime now, an eight year-old child could lose his parents to some criminal with a gun. Anytime now, some psycho wearing makeup can take away someone's loved one and leave them a wreck for the rest of your life. Anytime now, the woman they thought loved them will be the one putting the knife in their gut as their world burns around them. Anytime now, their hero to lead them out of the darkness will reveal his true colors, and he'll be the worst kind of criminal. What hope is there in such a fallen world?

"You wanted the inventory files, Mr. Payne?" chimed in the voice of Barbara Wilson, Bruce's secretary. Swiveling back towards the door, Bruce looked up towards the attractive blonde, his face masked in a smile as artificial as it was big.

"Yes. Just set them on the desk," Bruce said politely. As Barbara set the items on his desk and turned to leave, Bruce shook his head in admiration of Barbara's beauty. As his secretary wheeled out of the room and closed the door, the smile slowly dropped from Bruce's face as his thoughts turned inward again, words from Rachel, Rhaz Al Guhl, and Harvey swimming in his head.

To conquer fear, you must become fear; you must bask in the fear of other men, and men fear most what they cannot see.

It's not who you are underneath, but what you do that defines you.

You have to become a terrible thought, a wraith! You have to become an idea!

Justice is about harmony; revenge is about making yourself feel better

You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.

Feel terror cloud your senses! Feel its power to distort, to control, and know that this power can be yours!

Bruce, don't make me your one hope for a normal life.

Embrace your worst fear! Become one with the darkness!

You can't give in!

Snapping back to reality, Bruce turned back towards his desk, his face in all-business mode as he picked up his phone and dialed a certain number. Putting the phone to his ear, Bruce looked towards the door to his office.

This is Wayne enterprises; how may I help you? Asked the youthful voice of a young woman.

"I'm calling for Lucius Fox," said Bruce.

He isn't here right now; would you like to leave a message?

"I'm an old friend of his, and he and I were gonna go on a spelunking trip soon. Just tell him that; he'll know who it is."

Ok. I'll let Mr. Fox know. Anything else I can do for you?

"No thank you. Thanks for helping me out, miss," said Bruce as he hung up the phone. Seconds later, Bruce's phone began to ring again.

"Hello?" asked Bruce.

It's been a long time, Mr Wayne said the familiar, soothing voice of Lucius Fox.

"It has. How are things at Wayne Enterprises?"

They're going pretty good; Our stocks have never been higher, and the city seems to finally be getting out of the rut that it was in back when you were here.

"That's good."

Now, I don't believe that you would contact me after three years just to see how I was doing; what can I do for you, Mr. Wayne?

"Well, I've been living in London for three years now, and crime in the streets has been increasing tremendously, more so than usual. I need you to do me a favor."

What kind of favor?

"I need you to deliver a truckload of all my gadgets and toys to a warehouse that I use for cold storage here in London. I need everything from my days in Gotham."

What seems to be the problem in London?

"I can't tell you over the phone; it's too big to risk anyone overhearing anything. I'll tell you when you get here."

Fair enough. I'll see you soon, Mr. Wayne.

As Bruce said his goodbye and hung up his phone, Bruce swiveled back towards the window, eyeing the citizens of London with a brand new outlook.

"Now I just have to figure out who is Alice Liddell."

…..

In the heart of downtown London, a group of men, large and muscle-bound, patrolled the perimeter of a large warehouse, a building covering in a dark grey metal with now windows and a select few doorways big enough to slide a couple tanks through. Behind door 13, a single light was on in an otherwise dark room covered in pitch blackness. In the light, Alice could be seen slumped in a chair, her arms tied to the armrests and her legs strapped to the chairs. Her head slumped down, covering her face as her black dress was accentuated by the light hanging overhead.

"Don't be afraid, little girl," whispered a giddy voice from the darkness, no indication of where it came from. Alice stirred in her chair, moaning a bit as her head swayed back and forth, still looking down into her lap.

"I'm not afraid of anything," muttered Alice as her head continued to sway.

"Then take a trip to Wonderland!" screamed the voice, a voice so psychotic that Alice looked up, her eyes green as can be.

…

Alice stared out over the edge of the small waterfall she stood next to, the expanse before her covered with floating masses of brown land in the sky, each mass with a brightly-colored forest on it. Black domino pieces with white dots on them fluttered through the air. Turning back towards the land behind her, Alice's attire had changed considerably; sporting a blue dress with a white apron over it, black and white striped leggings covered her legs, as well as special strap-on black boots with five straps on each boot. Walking through the shallow water, Alice eyed a small series of cliffs leading up to higher ground. Gathering up her power in her legs, Alice leapt up to the first cliff, her body surrounded by a circle of blue butterflies. Upon landing on the green piece of grass and dirt, Alice ran by a small patch of red and baby blue flowers and leapt up a taller cliff, the butterflies trailing around her. From cliff to cliff she went until she reached a high point that lead down a cleared out path. Walking down the grassy path, Alice passed by large bubbles filled with snails and other odd-looking creatures. As quickly as she blinked, a small doll-like creature appeared before Alice several yards down the path, its demented squeal taunting Alice to follow. Breaking out into a sprint, Alice took chase, the forest whizzing by her until she came into a clearing, the doll nowhere in sight. In the center of the clearing, the bones of the Jabberwock sitting in the dirt collecting dust and mold. As Alice walked up to the remains, something began to materialize in front of her eyes. Covered in grey and black stripes, the yellow-eyed critter flashed its yellow teeth in a twisted smile, blood stains covering the tips. Twitching its pointed ears, it eyed Alice up and down.

"Welcome back, Alice," it purred with a honey-like voice.

"I wish I could say I was happy to see you, but whenever I do, nothing good comes of it," Alic e muttered, "By the way, I swear a Doll-child just ran through here. Did you see it?"

"Poor Alice; it seems that you so enjoy reliving the past."

"What are you talking about, cat?"

"You've let the great evil that nearly destroyed Wonderland 150 years ago return with a vengeance; what did we ever do to you? Do you enjoy torturing us so?"

"Cat, if I knew what you were talking about, I wouldn't be asking you questions, would I?"

"You can't let things repeat itself, Alice; Wonderland has been at peace for too long to allow such a force to tear it apart."

"But I destroyed the Doll Maker several years ago; how could he possibly be alive?" asked Alice as a great roar tore throughout the valley, the sky turning from blue to dark red. Trees and mountains started to collapse as a large castle came into view, its walls ablaze with fire.

"You were saying?" asked the cat, a smirk on its face.

"What is the Infernal Train doing here?!"

"It's of your own doing, Alice."

"It's ok; If it's just like last time, I'll find the doll maker and defeat him again."

"Although Wonderland is faced with the same threat, things cannot be handled in the same manner as before."

"I'll have to take your word for it, cat! THE TRAIN IS COMING RIGHT THROUGH HERE!" screamed Alice as she took off, reaching full speed in a few strides. Geysers of black ink burst from the ground all around her; Alice sprinted as fast as possible, turning around when she ran out of breath. Alice turned just in time to see the Infernal Train blow through the area where she and the cat had been talking. Dirt and ink flew everywhere as the train's forward battering ram blew through the environment. Alice's hair whipped behind her from the gusts of wind that came from the passing train…

….

As Alice thrusted violently in her chair, stretching the straps holding her to their limit, the large men from outside came rushing into the room, their bodies covered in grey Kevlar, their rifles at the ready at their hips. As the group of men began to circle around the girl, a voice came out from the shadows.

"What are you doing here?!" it hissed.

"We heard a lot of noise from outside," spoke up one of the men. "We came in to check it out."

"Well, everything is going fine, so go back outside! I'll let you know if I need your assistance."

As the men started filing out of the building, the voice began to emit a low chuckle. A pair of black buckled boots stepped into the light, followed by a pair of green cargo pants. As the man stepped into the light, a green leather jacket, unzipped all the way, fell to his waist, a black shirt underneath it. The man's eyes, black as coal, eyed Alice up and down, the wrinkles in his cheeks becoming more pronounced. Kneeling down behind Alice's chair, the man's tall, green top hat wiggled slightly, a white rectangular card reading 10/6 sticking out from the band around the rim of the hat.

"Are we ready to have more fun today, Alice?" asked the man, his tone oozing with deception masked by cheer.

"I'm always ready to have fun, Liz," said Alice in a faint voice, her eyes closed tightly as her head swung in a circular motion from chest to shoulder to back to other shoulder, over and over.

"Let's get going then. Now that the train is passed, let's go pick some pig snouts from the Duchess's backyard!"

"Are you sure the train is gone? I can still hear a faint roar in the distance."

"Come on, Alice; don't you trust me? We play together all the time now. When have I ever steered you wrong?"

"Well, ok then, if you say so."

"Ok! What do you say we have a race there? Last one there is a rotten toadstool!"

Working quickly, the man untied all of Alice's restraints, and pressed a button on his wrist device, which rested on a black band. Alice slowly rose to her feet, and opened her eyes, the green pupils screaming bloody murder. As Alice began walking towards the large doorways, the man tapped a different button on his wristband, and lowered his head towards it.

"Open the doors; the girl is on her way."

Will we be safe from her? You know how she gets crackled a voice on the other end from a headpiece inside the man's ear.

"Just don't get in her way, and you'll be as safe as a daisy," said the man as he pressed the button again, cutting off communication. Hearing the loud sounds of the doors opening at the other end of the building, the man pressed yet another button on his wrist, causing a large blue light to appear from the darkness in which the man came from. Stepping into the light, the man put his hand on a metal railing before pressing a button on a large wall pad. The doors closed as the tube in which the man stood began to zoom up at an accelerated rate. Coming to a stop, the buzzing and whirring of several electronic and computer systems reached the man's ears just as the doors slid open, revealing a large laboratory. Computers on the outside and several different tables in the middle, the man strode over to the large wall filled with monitors, slapping his green top hat on a table as he passed it by. His fingers clacking over several buttons, the man saw Alice walking out of the premises.

"Yes, go do my work for me, Alice. You're my little slave, an extension of my will; just do whatever my devices tell you to do, and we'll all sleep soundly at night," said the man as he pressed a few more keys, turning off the monitors, "Now I just have some business to take care of in the day tomorrow…"

…..

Children played in the streets under the light, oblivious of the stare of Bruce as he looked down at the city from his apartment window, his eyes soft like one thinking about another.

I sure hope Alice is ok. I know her history doesn't make any sense chronologically, but there's a reasonable explanation, right? She just doesn't seem like someone who's over 150 years old thought Bruce.

Don't be so foolish; her history is too unbelievable to be accurate. Something is very wrong here spoke a darker voice.

You're still alive? I thought you perished in the explosion outside of Gotham bay.

You can never kill me, remember? I'm an everlasting symbol, an indestructible instrument of Justice in this cruel world.

You may be, but I don't want to be that person anymore; I faked my death so that I could get out of this lifestyle of vengeance. I wanted to be Bruce Wayne.

You don't want to get out; I can hear your heart bleed over the injustices that have been plaguing London. Do something about it.

It's not my job anymore; let someone else do it.

There's nobody else who can; we're the only one with the skills and intellect to do this, and we both know that you still have the resources…

Turning back towards his living room, Bruce staggered to the couch, sitting down slowly as he grabbed the remote, aimed it at the television set, and watched the local news with a blank expression. As the multiple crime stories filled the screen, Bruce felt something stir inside of him.

"I need to get back into shape."