Dragonborn Justice rewrite
Chapter 2: The City That Never Sleeps
…
Martin walked through the streets of the city known as New York. It had been three days since he and Odahviing arrived in this strange new realm and Batman had been most persistent in questioning them on everything about their world and how they got here. Martin couldn't fault the Dark Knight's persistent questioning. If someone fell from the sky into his land, he'd want to know everything about them as well.
Then came the matter of Martin's cover identity which meant a trip to some rather unpleasant places to provide the necessary paperwork to prove he was who he said he was.
Then there was the matter of where he was going to live. Martin didn't want to live in the city, feeling too closed in by the number of people and the smells in the air were too putrid for his tastes. Martin chose a small block of land outside of the city in an area called the River Valley which was more for the upscale clientele and New York's elite as place for getaways and vacation homes.
But to buy the small plot of land and the house that came with it, Martin needed money which he had a drawstring bag of six thousand gold septims. Of course, when he pulled out the bag of gold coins, everyone's jaws dropped. The Dovahkiin had been confused by everyone's reactions at first until he was told how much gold was worth in this realm. Apparently, six thousand gold septims made him a millionaire in this realm which was enough for the small plot of land numbering around fifteen square acres and the house that was more of a manor than a house.
Martin had spent the second day in this realm setting up his home to his specifications which included a forge room in the basement where he could make or repair his weapons, an alchemy lab, a library with a study and an enchanting table. These items Martin had built himself.
The third day was spent just getting used to the area known as the River Valley. Some of the area's residents had noticed the new arrival and they were very much curious and nosy about their new neighbour. Some of the women in the neighbourhood had tried to flirt with Martin as he was a handsome man even though he didn't seem to think so nor did he even realise it. Even some men who more inclined to play for the other team had made a pass at Martin as well. But some of the men whose wives had tried to flirt with Martin postured and blustered about their social status and their wealth but a cold sharp look from Martin's flinty eyes sent them cowering.
After spending enough time in the River Valley, Martin had decided to visit the city and it was the present day that he was in New York getting a feel for the city. The city never seemed to stop as many of the citizens of New York were always on the go, whether it be going to and from work, to and from school or perhaps meeting with friends & family. Everyone seemed to be in a rush to get from one place to the other.
And there were other things in the city that Martin had noticed. On the devices called televisions Martin saw live footage and news reels of the Justice League in action and their efforts in halting crime. Yet for some reason, the Justice League never once killed their opponents. It was something that confused Martin. If this world's criminals kept on committing crimes and getting away with them or kept breaking out of prison if they were caught, shouldn't they be put to death?
Martin knew all too well that every living person and creature had a right to live and he knew the line between taking a life and sparing one because he had done both. But in the case of this world's criminals who were merely given a slap on the wrist, sent to prison and then broke out of prison to commit their crimes all over again, he couldn't see why the Justice League or even the authorities themselves put these career criminals on death row. If anything, it showed just how naive the so-called heroes and saviours of this world were.
Walking along the street, Martin took in all the sights of the city before stopping in a little café. Sitting himself at the nearest table, Martin waited until a waitress came over to him "Hi! What'll you have?" the waitress, a pretty blonde, asked perkily as she pulled out a note pad and pen ready to take Martin's order.
"What do you have?" came Martin's response.
"Well, we've got our usual coffee blends, we have some gourmet sandwiches, our daily soup special and we also have hot food and cold drinks" the waiter replied "So what will you have?"
Martin looked at the menu before choosing a plain chicken sandwich and a bottle of plain water. The waitress took his order and took it to the kitchen. A few minutes later, the waitress returned with a plate bearing a sandwich and a bottle of water.
"Here you are, handsome" the waitress said to Martin cheerfully as she placed the plate down in front of Martin and the bottle of water was placed in front of him. Martin thanked the waitress who lingered a little before moving onto another customer. Martin then ate his sandwich hungrily and drank the water quickly, before he went to the counter to pay for his meal.
The waitress who served Martin was quite eager to get his bill and after paying in cash for the meal, Martin received the receipt and on the bottom of the piece of paper was a little row of digits and a few words beside them saying 'Delilah, call me' and finished with a little heart.
Martin looked at the row of digits and shook his head before pocketing the receipt and left the café.
Exiting the café, Martin continued to walk down the street observing the public as they walked past him. It was so boring for Martin to be walking around this city with nothing to do, he wished that there was something for him to do, if only to relieve his boredom.
And as if in answer to his silent prayer, a scream rang out in a nearby alley and Martin saw a young woman being accosted by three young rough looking men wearing black leather jackets and funky looking neon pink sunglasses. Seeing an innocent woman in danger, Martin ran into the alley and tackled the nearest of the hoodlums down. The downed gang member's friends noticed their fellow tackled to the ground.
"Aw man! It ain't no fun if some spud disturbs us!" one of them complained.
"Shut up and shiv the spud!" his companion ordered and they then pulled out some weapons, a knife and a crowbar.
Martin glared at the two young men before punching the one he tackled in the temple knocking him out before standing up to face the other two. At first the two gang members felt a little intimidated at Martin's size and muscle mass. It was only bravado and the confidence of better numbers and weaponry that made the two gang members try to circle their opponent.
"Finally some action!" Martin grinned showing white teeth as he cracked his knuckles ready for a fight.
"Geez man, spud's into it!" one of the two gang members said apprehensively.
"Don't go all billy! He's outnumbered! Shiv him and we can go!" his friend replied.
"Are you gonna stand there all day or are we gonna fight?" Martin asked them.
"It ain't no fun if they're into it!" the nervous gang member complained.
"Come on! Fight me already!" Martin growled at the gang punks.
"Blow this man! Let's go to the arcade!" and with that said the two gang members ran from the alleyway.
"Cowards!" Martin growled in annoyance; he had been looking forward to seeing a little action. Looking to the young woman, Martin gently asked her "Are you alright, Miss?"
The young woman was quite pretty, Martin observed; she had chocolate brown hair drawn back into a pony tail and was wearing some neat and tidy clothing with some glasses perched on her nose.
"Are you alright, Miss?" Martin asked her again.
"Y-yes! I'm fine!" the young woman replied shakily "I guess this will teach me not to take a shortcut through a dark alley" she added looking out of breath and shaken up.
"Do you want to sit down for a minute?" Martin asked in concern. The young woman shook her head and replied
"No, I'm fine! I'd just like to leave this place" she said.
"Let's do that then" Martin suggested. The young woman took a couple of steps forward and she almost collapsed to the ground but Martin quickly caught her and lifted her up in his arms and carried her out of the alley. As soon as they reached the street, Martin set the young woman on the ground again.
"Are you going to be alright, Miss?" the Dragonborn asked the young woman.
"Yes, I'll be fine" the young woman replied with a shaky smile "I just need to gather my wits" she said.
"What's your name?" Martin asked her.
"Felicity. Felicity Smoak" the woman replied "Who are you?" she asked.
"Martin" the Dovahkiin replied.
"Thank you for saving me back there" Felicity then said "I almost thought no-one was going to come save me, so thanks for showing up when you did" she added gratefully.
"It's alright, I did what any good person would do" Martin replied "Where were you heading?" he then asked.
"I was heading to STAR Labs for work" Felicity answered "I thought I could take a shortcut through the alley, I just didn't expect the Mutants to be hanging around there" she said sheepishly.
"The Mutants?" Martin repeated.
"They're a gang of street punks and thugs who go around killing anyone for the sheer thrill of it" Felicity explained "Have you never heard of them before?" she asked incredulously.
"I'm new to the city" Martin replied.
"Oh! Well, I guess you can say your first day in the Big Apple was heroic saving my life" Felicity joked.
"I'm no hero, Miss" Martin said seriously "I hate the way that term is bandied around" he added grimly.
"What do you mean?" Felicity asked inquisitively "Are you talking about the Justice League?"
"A topic for another time" Martin said curtly "If there's nothing else, I'll leave you to it" he added "Just don't go taking shortcuts through dark alleys, I might not be there to save you" he advised.
"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind" Felicity said as Martin then walked down the street leaving her alone to calm herself and then start walking down the footpath, remembering not to take a shortcut through an alley like her saviour advised her not to.
Afterwards the day passed without incident and Martin returned to the River Valley where he spent a quiet night eating a home cooked meal in front of the TV everyone insisted he install so that he could keep up with current events.
Halfway through his meal, Martin came across an interesting news report.
"This is Snapper Carr live at the New York Shopping district where a hostage situation has broken out!" the news reporter said from a live broadcast "The gang known as the Mutants have taken hostage a shopping centre of over a dozen people and are threatening to execute the hostages if they are not given a ransom of twenty-million dollars! Negotiators are in talks with the spokesperson of the Mutant faction to negotiate the release of the hostages!"
Martin turned off the TV and went into his basement/forge room. Opening a specialised wardrobe, Martin began to put on his armour and weaponry with practised speed and skill. Within a few minutes, Martin was fully armed and armoured and he walked outside and called for Odahviing. The dragon answered the summons and soared lazily past the Dragonborn who latched onto the beast's horns and slid easily onto the dragon's back.
Ordering Odahviing to fly to the city, Martin prepared himself for his first time facing criminals in this realm. And no matter what the Justice League said, he would ensure that true justice would be mete out to the criminals!
Reaching the city, Martin gave some quick orders for Odahviing to fly outside of the city lest the national guard be called in because of a giant flying dragon flying around the city. Dropping off the dragon's back and entering freefall, Martin prepared his Thu'um.
FEIM ZII GRON!
Martin's form faded enough to appear spectral and he landed without a sound in an alleyway just outside of the shopping centre where the hostage situation was taking place. Walking out of the alleyway, Martin saw some squad cars along with SWAT trucks surrounding the entrance of the shopping centre. The chief of police was shouting through a megaphone at a window where a Mutant member was standing at armed with an LMG.
"Let go of one of the hostages and I'll give you one of my men in return!" the chief of police shouted.
The Mutant gang member shouted back "As if, pig! Give us the ransom and we'll consider letting the hostages go!"
Martin approached the police cars. The Dovahkiin received many strange looks from the police officers "Who the heck is this bozo?" one of the officers asked but Martin ignored the man and he stood behind the chief of police and coughed to get the man's attention.
The chief of police turned around and his eyes widened as he saw the behemoth of a man in black and red armour armed to the teeth standing before him "I'm here to offer my assistance" the behemoth said candidly.
"Who or what are you?" the chief of police asked dumbfounded.
"Call me Dragonborn" came the behemoth's reply "I saw the news report and thought I could offer my assistance" he added "What's the situation?" he asked professionally.
"Well, Mr Dragon-lord, we got a bunch of psycho teenage street punks armed to the teeth with automatic rifles and light machine guns holding a dozen people hostage inside the building and they're demanding a ransom of twenty-million dollars" the chief of police said "But knowing the Mutants and their methods, as soon as they get the ransom they'll kill the hostages" he added grimly "We have SWAT teams on stand-by ready to storm the place and take out the Mutants and free the hostages."
"But most like some innocent people will get caught in the crossfire" the Dragonborn finished. The chief of police sighed before replying
"I know! I want to do this without any casualties and I want to get rid of the Mutants inside!" he stated "Can't rely on the high and mighty Justice League, they're too busy prancing around fighting monsters and robots, preaching about truth, justice and the American way" he mocked bitterly.
"I'll do it" the Dragonborn offered and the chief of police looked at him questioningly and asked
"And why would I let some Conan the Barbarian wannabe into a hostage situation?"
"Because I'm not like the Justice League" the Dragonborn replied "I'm no hero, never was, never will be" he said "The world doesn't need another hero. It needs a professional" he stated.
"And you're that professional?" the chief of police asked.
"Aye, that I am" the Dragonborn grinned showing pearly white teeth with longer than average canines "Send me in and I'll take out every one of those street gang scum!"
"I'd rather you leave one of them alive so we can question them" the chief of police replied.
"Easily done" Dragonborn responded "Pull your men out, I'll handle this" he said as he drew a pair of onyx swords.
"Well, if you're that suicidal then by all means" the chief of police said resignedly before giving his men the order to pull out. The rest pf the police officers looked at their boss dumbfounded when he said that he was sending in an outside party to negotiate with the Mutants.
Martin quietly climbed through a window into a shoe store and hid behind a counter. Peering around the corner, Martin saw a member of the Mutants, a seventeen-year-old boy with a bald head wearing a black leather jacket, leather pants and neon pink sunglasses and armed with a light machine gun.
Martin sighed in frustration; he didn't want to kill a boy who hadn't even reached eighteen years old but he was pragmatic about the problem. If a boy had thrown his lot in with the Mutants, then he would have to be shown the error of his ways.
ZUL MEY GUT!
"Hey slug-breath!"
The seventeen-year-old Mutant gang member looked up and walked into the shoe store levelling his weapon up in front of him. Martin quietly snuck around until he was behind the boy and he slowly crept up until he standing right behind him. The Mutant gang member shrugged and turned around and he gasped as he a black armoured giant standing in front of him. The boy tried to raise his gun to fire a shot but Martin slapped the weapon out of the boy's hand and with his other hand, he grabbed the boy by the throat and slammed his head into the wall.
The boy slid to the floor unconscious, a little blood trickling out of the small wound on his head. Using some simple hessian rope he was carrying with him, Martin hogtied the boy before exiting the shoe store to enter the shopping mall. Quietly creeping along the floor, Martin took note of everything around him from the lights to the stores. Reaching the food court, Martin then saw a group of people who were tied up and whimpering in fear while a bunch of youths dressed much the same as the seventeen-year-old gang member was and all of them armed with assault rifles and handguns.
Martin hid behind some tables and he overheard one of the gang members talking
"Man I wish I could go all billy berserk and peg these spuds" the gang member complained "When are we getting the ransom?" he asked.
"Chill, as soon as we get the ransom we flush the hostages" another gang member answered "But for now, don't shiv!" he warned.
"Heh, I think of 'em just messed himself" another gang member joked as he poked one of the hostages who whimpered and cowered in fear.
Martin narrowed his eyes as he overheard the Mutant gang members talking; they seemed worse than the bandits in Skyrim. Bandits in Skyrim were only after money and usually let a hostage they took go once they received the ransom money. But these Mutants… they were going to kill the hostages either way. Martin resolved to end the lives of these Mutants.
Taking out his crossbow, Martin aimed at the nearest of the lights and fired a bolt. The bolt soared through the air and hit the light, breaking it into pieces. The light in the area was dimmed slightly as one light was destroyed. The sound of the light breaking caused the Mutants to look up in alarm and look around aiming their weapons at shadows.
"Who's the fucking spud that shot the light?!" one gang member shouted.
"Spread out! Find and peg the spud!" another gang member ordered and the Mutants then spread out and began to walk through the aisles and walkways, trying to find who destroyed the light. Martin smiled inwardly; they should've stayed together… easy pickings.
Martin stealthily crept around shadowing one of the Mutants and quickly snapped the man's neck, killing him instantly before dragging the body out of sight. After hiding the body around a corner, Martin then made his way to another of the gang members and drawing out his dragon-bone dagger, he slit the thug's neck to the bone. The thug gurgled and choked on his own life-blood as Martin dragged him out of sight. After the thug died choking on his own blood, Martin continued to work his way through the street thugs, either breaking their necks, stabbing them through the hearts or cutting their throats.
The last Mutant gang member was now panicking as he was now all alone without any of his gang members to back him up. Taking a desperate gamble, the Mutant gangster grabbed one of the hostages and shouted "Alright come on out, spud! Or I'll flush this bitch right now!"
Martin then stepped into view and the Mutant gang member gulped in fear as he saw the midnight black armour and the knife the Dragonborn held in his hand covered in blood.
"And here I am" Martin said to the gang banger "Let the hostages go, and I may show mercy" he offered.
"No! This is how it's gonna work! I'm gonna walk outta here alive and you dead!" the Mutant member shouted as he shoved aside the hostage and aimed his assault rifle at the Dragonborn who reacted with his Thu'um.
FEIM ZII GRON!
The bullets soared right through the Dovahkiin's spectral form into the wall and once the Mutant's gun had expended all rounds in the magazine, Martin's form faded back to normal.
"My turn!"
Faster than the eye could follow, Martin was upon the Mutant gang banger in an instant and he wrenched the gun out of the man's hands and using his superior strength, he broke the arms of the gang member causing the man to scream out in pain. Martin then slammed his helmeted head into the street thug's nose breaking out and causing blood to gush out and the thug collapsed to the ground unconscious.
Martin then saw to the hostages. The hostages whimpered in fear as Martin approached but he gave them a gentle smile to show that he was friendly and he cut their bonds and removed the duct tape around their mouths.
"Are you alright?" the Nord/Imperial asked them.
The hostages looked at the dead Mutants and one of them spoke "What kind of hero kills?"
"Who said I was a hero?" Martin asked rhetorically "Get to the front entrance, the police are waiting for you all" he ordered them and the hostages were quick to make their way to the front entrance where they were greeted by the police and EMTs. Martin then saw to burning the bodies of the dead Mutants and after burning the bodies to ashes in an instant, Martin then retrieved the two unconscious Mutants and dragged them out to the front where he was greeted by the Chief of Police.
"Two Mutants? I thought I asked for one?" the grizzled Chief asked.
"Better than nothing" Martin replied "Don't worry about the other bodies, I disposed of them" he said.
"What? How did you do that?" the chief of police asked.
"Dragon-fire" Martin answered "Burns anything to ash in an instant" he explained.
"Well, not how I would've done it but thanks for your help, Mr Dragon-Lord" the Chief of police said gratefully "Can't say I've seen a hero kill before" he added "Has the Justice League dropped their no-killing rule?"
"I'm not with the Justice League" Martin stated "And I'm no hero" he added.
"Well, glad you helped us out and got all the hostages out of there" the chief of police replied and as he finished saying that last sentence, some familiar faces showed up. The Justice League.
Batman stepped off the hard light construct that Green Lantern was using to transport those who could not fly and he immediately got to business.
"What happened here?" he asked or rather demanded.
"Hostage situation" Martin answered "I took care of the problem and got the hostages out and eliminated the threat" he explained.
"You killed them" Superman stated rather than asked.
"Life or death situation" Martin replied with a shrug "It was either kill the Mutants or risk them killing the hostages" he said.
"That's not how we do things here!" Flash said crossing his arms and he flinched a little when the Dragonborn gazed at him and said
"There will always be people who kill" the Nord/Imperial stated "And who ever said I was a hero?" he then asked "If you had seen or known some of the things I've done, then you would agree that I did what I had to" he said.
"Regardless, you killed people! You're going to jail!" Batman said sternly.
The chief of police then stepped "Back off Bats! I personally sanctioned the Dragon-Lord to use lethal force to save the hostages and eliminate the threat" he said "If it were for him, those hostages might be dead!"
"Even so, the Dragonborn has killed" Batman growled "He has to answer for what he's done!"
"And who do you answer to, Bat-Freak?" the chief of police challenged "You think because of your little club you get to say what's right and what's wrong? Ha! A big fucking joke if I ever heard one!" he mocked.
"And what happens when the Dragonborn starts killing innocent people?" Wonder Woman asked in a commanding voice "what happens then?"
"We'll cross the bridge when we get to it" the chief of police replied "But for now, the Dragon-Lord has the protection of the New York Police Department!" he said.
The members of the Justice League looked at each other before Batman spoke "This isn't over" he said to Martin who replied "You're right, this is just the beginning."
And the Justice League then left the area to wherever they came from.
"Thank you for defending me back there" Martin said to the Chief of Police "But you didn't have to do that" he added.
"Relax, you helped us out when we needed it" the chief of police replied "Only fair we return the favour" he said.
"Well thank you all the same, sir" Martin said gratefully "have a good night, Chief" he added as he called Odahviing to come. The dragon answered and Martin then mounted the dragon's back and they flew off back to the River Valley.
"An actual dragon huh?" the chief of police muttered "What's next? Trolls living under the bridge?" he joked to himself as he headed for his car to return home to his family.
…
TO BE CONTINUED…
A/N: well there it is everyone, the second chapter of the rewrite. I hope you all liked it, although admittedly the last part where the Justice League shows up could've been done better but I hope you all like it nonetheless. I've gotten to thinking about bringing some other DC characters into the story such as Power Girl, Starfire and Raven because they haven't been seen in the series but with the new third season of Young Justice coming out, we might see some characters like Starfire and Raven make an appearance.
I've gotten to thinking about some story arcs for this story, of course I will do some chapters where Martin helps the Team out though he might have some things to say about sending children to do the Justice League's dirty work at great risk to their own lives, because when you think about it, the line of work in a superhero is incredibly dangerous and for children/teenagers to do it, what kind of adult would have children accompany him/her into fights against criminals like the Joker or Lex Luthor? Not a very good one I imagine.
Anyways, onto other matters, I've been thinking about rewriting my Elder Scrolls/Injustice story. I know some you will ask why I would want to rewrite the story but I've been looking at it over and over, and I just think it could better if I made some changes to it such as how the Dragonborn ends up in the Injustice universe or some of his weapons could be different as well as the super-pill because when I found out about the super-pill in Injustice it was too late to make the changes to the story. So those are some reasons why I would want to rewrite the story to make it better.
Also in other news, I'm trying to get my rewrite of my Justice League of Amazons: Dragonborn story up and running but I'm still ironing out some details so just bear with me and hopefully the rewrite will be up soon.
Anyway, that's enough from me for today, leave a review telling me what you liked or didn't like and I'll try to do better in the next chapter or in some of my other stories.
Take care all,
Angry lil' elf.
