The heart heart monitor on the wall was driving Tim crazy. He'd been sitting beside Barbara's bed ever since the explosion. Bruce had told him to stay with her in case anything happens, but Tim knew it was to protect him from doing something stupid.
The x-ray images on the wall told a sad story. A fragment of crystal had lodged itself deep into Barbara's lower spine. The fragment was too dangerous to remove and Barbara would most likely be paralyzed from the waste down. Commissioner Gordon said that if Rielly hadn't died in that explosion, he would have been shot on sight by all of GCPD.
Waylon Jones trudged through the murky waters of the sewer system with a hefty payload. He had just been payed a couple thousand for hauling crates for Penguin. Waylon did heavy lifting for bigger names often. Lifting crates was easier than robbing banks any day.
Croc was turning the corner to the entrance to his den when he smelled a unfamiliar scent. He followed it to a large cluster of shiny crytals half buried in the concrete tunnel.
"You're new. Somebody would probably pay a good bit for a big hunk of diamond or whatever you are. Waste not, want not."
Waylon tied a piece of rope around the cluster and dragged it back to his den, placing it next to his other goods. He could probably sell it to Riddler for one of his science projects. Waylon plopped down onto his couch to watch the news. The news rambled on about stocks, Bruce Wayne's latest donation, yada yada. A large crater caught Waylon's eye. He unmuted the TV.
"In more pressing news, the explosion that rocked lower Gotham two days earlier is now thought to be from a meta-human attack. This man, Samus Rielly, is said to have created and died in the blast, but fragments of crystal killed 4 people and injured 16 more."
The camera showed a picture of crystal fragment. Waylon looked at the TV and the crystal cluster. I'll be damned. Somebody's gotta want some of this bad if it can do that. I'll ask around tomorrow. Waylon got up and climbed into to a large hammock hanging from the ceiling. He slowly drifted off to sleep.
CRACK
Waylon flew out of the hammock, snarling. Seeing no threat, he calmed down. Waylon felt a cold liquid on his feet. A dark slime was leaking out of the cluster. Croc walked over to find a jagged crack in the cluster. He dug his claws into the crystal and pulled the crack apart. A pale naked man fell out of a chamber in the cluster along with more of the slime.
The man had nothing but a black gas mask on. The same crystals jutted out in some places, mainly around the joints. The crystals formed sharp points on his knees and elbows. His hands hahad almost no skin on them, but jagged crystal in the shape of a hand creating sharp claws. All of a sudden, the man jumped up. Waylon stared in confusion, and the man stared back. The man waved. Waylon responded by forcefully punching the man into the wall.
A/N- Why, hello there. If you are reading this, you've stumbled upon my little hobby. So, to recap, this story is not in the regular universe of Batman. This is an amalgamation of my favorite Batman creations. This story is different because of a lot of reasons. Batman's in his early fourties, Robin/Tim Drake is in his early teens, Dick Grayson is still Nightwing, yada yada. Anyways, if you have any criticisms, put 'em in the review thing. If you like the story, put a this thing - - in the review. Until next time, my dude and/or dudette.
