(AN): Elloooo again. Hope you enjoy the next chapter!
Chapter 1
"And where did you go afterwards?" The officer asked me. I looked up from the metal table in front of me.
"After all the toxin cleared and the city was rescued, the woman I was with, Rachel, took both of us to the police department. When one of the social workers couldn't get me to say anything, they dropped me off at the Gotham City Orphanage and eventually I started therapy. That was where I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and selective mutism." I told him.
"When did you see Crane again?" He asked me, writing something down on the clipboard in front of him.
"Seven years later, when Bane attacked Gotham."
"Hey Em! Wake up!" I heard a voice yell as someone started to rub my shoulder. "Em! It's all over the news! C'mon! You need to see this!" I recognized my friend Jeffrey's voice. I slowly opened my eyes and rubbed them awake. I gave him a questioning look.
It was obvious he had just gotten up a few minutes before me. His hair was still ruffled from sleep. It reminded me of the way he looked when I first met him in the Narrows when the fear toxin was seeping out into the streets. He gave me an exasperated look.
"Seriously, you need to see this." He repeated. I got up, wrapping my comforter around my shoulders and followed him to our small living room. We'd been living together in this small apartment since we both turned eighteen, gaining freedom from the Gotham City Orphanage. Then I remembered Jeffrey's nineteenth birthday was actually in a few weeks.
I yawned as he picked up the remote and turned up the volume on the TV. A News Reporter from the Gotham Emergency Channel was speaking animatedly about a football stadium being held hostage by a man named Bane. I recognized the name from a few days ago. I pointed to the screen and looked at Jeffrey, who seemed to get what I was asking.
"Yea… That's the guy who broke into the Gotham Stock Exchange a while back." He confirmed. I turned my attention back to the screen.
Bane and his men had apparently set up explosives underneath the stadium, causing a full blown collapse when they were detonated. We estimate at least one hundred people to be injured during the explosion- Wait… We have just received a live feed of the event-
The screen went to an image of what could only be described as an extremely bulky man wearing some sort of mask. His hands were holding onto the inside of his jacket as he stood there, looking around the stadium.
"Gotham! Take control! Take control of your city! This! This is the instrument of your liberation!" He said, displaying some sort of machine. "Identify yourself to the world!" He shoved a microphone in front of a bound man's face after he was shoved to the ground.
"Dr. Leonid Pavel, nuclear physicist." The man rasped out.
"And what, what is this?" Bane asked, referring to the machine.
"It's a… Fully primed neutron bomb, with a blast radius of six miles." The man answered.
"And who is capable of disarming such a device?" Bane asked. The man hesitated, breathing out.
"Only me…" He replied.
"Only you." Bane nodded. "Thank you, good doctor." Then he moved towards the man, and in a sudden movement snapped his neck, causing a sick cracking sound to echo in the microphone. Screams erupted from the audience as the man fell onto the ground. Ignoring the evident terror that filled the stadium, Bane continued.
"Now… This bomb is armed!" Bane exclaimed. "This bomb is mobile! And the identity of the triggerman is a mystery! For one of you, holds the detonator. And we came here not as conquerors, but as liberators to return control of this city to the people. And in the first sign of interference from the outside world, or from those people attempting to flee, this anonymous Gothamite, this unsung hero, will trigger the bomb. And now Marshal Law is in effect. Return to your homes, hold your families close, and wait. Tomorrow you claim what is rightfully yours." The man concluded and flung down his microphone, nearly hitting the corpse of the man he had only killed moments ago, and walked out of the stadium alongside his men. The feed cut short.
The video returned to the News Reporter, who was still evidently staring at one of the screens in the studio he was in as he swallowed harshly and turned to face the camera, obviously unsure of what to say. He blinked as he swallowed again and looked to the side of the camera before the video cut off, taking us back to whatever show Jeffrey had been watching before.
I slowly turned to look at Jeffrey, most likely with a look of fear plastered all over my face. I could tell he was afraid too, even though he was trying hard to hide it. I'd known him too long to be fooled by his act.
"I'm… I'm sure we'll be fine, Em." He said, taking a step towards the couch and sitting down. "Hell of a time for the Batman to disappear, huh? " I continued to stare off at nothing, thinking of the possible horrors that may unfold the next day. I blinked and tightened the blanket around my shoulders before looking over to Jeff. I slowly made my way over to him and sat down, resting my head on his shoulder. It was cold in our apartment, but what could you expect from a rundown apartment building just outside the Narrows with a landlady who was probably related to Satan himself? We could barely afford this place as it was. I continued to allow myself to be distracted by the cold.
We must've sat there for at least a half hour before I realized both of us were going to be late for work. I sat up, and nodded at the old clock resting on the side table reading 10:50. Jeffrey looked at it and I started walking towards my room to shower. My shift started at 11:15. I guess we both decided that we should just act like we normally would until Bane did something else.
I cursed inside my head when I couldn't get the water to turn hot. Jeffrey must've had to cut back on the bills again.
At least we have water… I thought to myself, and got in, nearly shivering as the freezing water engulfed me. I showered quickly, not wanting to be cold any longer and shut the water off, wrapping myself in a towel.
I got dressed in my uniform and towel-dried my dark hair before putting it up in a messy bun. I wished I had the money to get a haircut. My hair had grown well past my shoulders and was starting to get more difficult to take care of.
I looked myself over to make sure everything was neat. My gaze found my mom's necklace, and I examined it, holding it with my fingers. A pang of fear shot through me. I desperately hoped whatever this Bane had planned it wouldn't be anything like that night.
Taking a deep breath, I looked at myself one more time in the mirror, deemed myself presentable, and walked out towards the door, grabbing my old jacket from the coat rack.
"Oh hey Em, wait!" Jeffrey called from the kitchen just as I started to walk out the door. I looked up and watched as he walked over to me, handing me a glass of water and two pills.
"You almost forgot your meds." He said, and smiled at me. I smiled back before taking the two pills and popping them in my mouth, gulping them down with water. The medicine was supposed to help with anxiety, although it didn't seem like it did much. However I'd taken them for years after the event in the Narrows.
The Orphanage had hired a therapist to try to help me overcome my PTSD and selective mutism but after months of trying, it was evident nothing could really help me, and they never exactly understood why I never got better. I just couldn't make myself talk. So instead they just prescribed anxiety meds to help and left me on them until I stopped having nightmares, which eventually did go away. But recently they've been coming back. I was lucky we could still afford the pills or else life would be a lot more difficult.
"Oh hey, I'm gonna start taking an extra shift at the factory every night to help pay for the heating bill this winter. Would you mind going to the store later and picking up a few things?" Jeffrey asked, holding out a small piece of paper. I gave him a small smile and put the list in my pocket as grinned at me.
I gave him a quick wave as he shut the door behind me and made my way out of the apartment building.
*Nine Hours Later*
I yawned as I looked at the clock hanging on the wall and saw that it was a quarter after eight. Sighing, I took off my apron and hung it on one of the hooks near the time slot machine. I just got done working my second shift, deciding that I wanted to help Jeffrey pay for the heating bill too. I took my name card and swiped it, ending my work day. I waved at Mellie, my boss, letting her know I was heading home for the evening.
"See ya tomorrow, darling. Sleep tight." She yelled, waving back. I put my coat on and started to head for the door.
"Oh wait sweetheart!" I heard Mellie call. I turned around to see her running towards me with an envelope. "I almost forgot today's your payday." Recognition flashed across my face and I smiled at her, taking the envelope.
"Alright sweetie, be careful out there. It gets a lot darker quicker nowadays." She told me. "This winter's gonna be a cold one, I can just tell." She held open the door for me and I walked out.
"See ya tomorrow!" She called after me. I gave her another short wave. She was a very kind woman, just barely into her fifties, which you wouldn't be able to tell due to the lack of grey hairs on her head. I'd started working for her a few weeks before I turned eighteen, saving up to rent the apartment with Jeffrey.
I shivered as a cold breeze blew past me, and remembering that I had to pick up groceries, started heading towards the nearest deli. I rubbed my hands together to keep warm against the cold night air. I was just about there when a sharp shriek sliced through the air, causing me to turn my head.
I narrowed down the noise to coming from one of the alleyways on the other side of the street. Although there was a lamp post, I couldn't see anything in the alleyway, causing me to squint if I wanted to see anything.
I heard a yelp coming from the alley to my left and slowly walked over. I saw a woman on the ground, covering her face. I quickly walked over to her, checking for signs of injury. She jumped when I touched her shoulder, making her red curls fall in front of her face. She was a little bit older than me from what I could tell, but much skinnier compared to me, which was insane considering that I was half starved myself.
She looked up at me, fear swimming in her blue eyes. "You need to run- you need to get out of here before the—before they find me. Before they get here." She warned me. I gave her a confused look, my eyes narrowing at her.
"What?!" She almost yelled, her voice rising. "Didn't you hear me? You need to get out of he—" Something behind me caught her attention and her eyes widened before looking back up to me. I turned my head and saw three silhouettes, all obviously male, standing there.
I stood up straight, trying to pull the other woman up with me, but when she refused to stand on her own, I had no choice but to set her back down and run. I sprinted out of the alley faster than I'd ever ran in years, memories of the night in the Narrows flashing through my mind and I cursed the fact that I was in one of the abandoned neighborhoods near the diner.
I could hear pounding feet chasing me down, gaining on me, and I willed myself to move faster. My breath was coming in shallow pants now and I knew I couldn't do this for much longer. I didn't even see it coming when one of the men chasing me tackled me to the ground, my vision going blurry from my head hitting the sidewalk.
"I got her." I heard a voice say. "What do we do with her?"
"Well… We can't just let her go. She'd get the cops or something. Let's just bring her back to the base, let Barsad decide what to do with her. She could be useful." Another voice answered. I almost cried out when something heavy hit the back of my head.
Darkness consumed me.
Alright. Well. Hope that was enjoyable. Please leave a review and lemme know what you think! :D
