Episode 7: The Next Shot

Batman wasn't even sure what had just happened. One minute he'd been standing, the next, he was now on his back, staring up at the sky with his head suddenly throbbing for no apparent reason. His vision was blurred for a few seconds as he was temporarily distorted by the sudden hit he'd taken. He groaned a sickly groan, lying there completely unsure of which way up he was. He allowed himself a brief moment to collect his thoughts and replay what had just happened. The chase, the assassin, the gun...the shot. The vigilante quickly ran a hand over his head, already expecting to see the telltale bloodstains on his gloved hand that would tell him the worst. His hand was clean. There was no blood. He only felt what seemed like a deep scratch on his cowl. Batman understood why this was. At the very last second, he had managed to lean back just as the gunman had fired. The bullet had hit him, but not at the right angle. Instead of powering straight into his skull, it had skimmed over the top of his forehead, his cowl protecting him from said shot thus explaining why there was no blood, and the impact of the shot was what had left him momentarily distorted, not the actual shot. Despite escaping the worst of the bullet, he still felt as if he'd been hit by a hammer. His head pounded and as he slowly got back to his feet, he could feel the pain as if somebody was squeezing his brain inside his skull. The gunman had watched this with what seemed like inquisitive interest rather than shock. He didn't even seem annoyed that Batman was still alive.

"Heh...you're the first man I've ever shot who's managed to stand up again. You just made this night suddenly more interesting." the assassin crowed.

Batman massaged his forehead, allowing his vision to clear up enough so he could now make out the assassin who had just shot at him. He clearly was no ordinary assassin and it was evident from the body armour that he was wearing. He was clad in red and black armour with a thick chest plate and shoulder-pads, large gauntlets and thick chunky boots. The gauntlets both had single-barrel guns that effectively gave him the impression of having guns attached to his arms, and his upper-arms had black bands containing bullets wrapped around his biceps. He wore a silver mask that covered all of his face except for one eye. His right eye had a red circular lens that was presumably used as a sniper scope for the assassin and his mouth was shielded by a silver mouth-plate that would make any attempt to punch him in the jaw meaningless. He had more bullets around his waist, all held together by a belt with a large bullet-shaped buckle. As well as the guns on his arms, he had a long, black sniper rifle slung on his back, possibly what he had just used to shoot Harvey Dent with. Batman was quietly fascinated, yet repulsed by this man. His costume spelled death in every detail. This was the costume of a man who loved to kill and it sickened him to see so many bullets all over him. His already extreme hatred of guns made him loathe this man even more.

"Bit on the nose, I'd say your costume is." Batman muttered, "Who are you? And why are you trying to kill Harvey Dent?!"

"Who I am is for me to know and nobody else bat boy." the gunman retorted, "But if you wanna call me something, then you can call me Deadshot. Mind you...not many people live long enough to call me anything. As for the D.A.? I thought it'd be obvious, don't you know why anybody shoots anybody in this city?"

"You've been paid..." Batman growled, answering his own question, "By who?"

"Maybe if you can beat me, I might tell you," Deadshot sneered, "But I'm not in the mood for a fight right now. Gotta make sure Dent's actually dead. That shot wasn't perfect and the damage done might not finish him off."

"If you want Dent, you have to get past me." the costumed crime fighter warned, trying to ignore the still lingering pain in his head.

Deadshot just shrugged, as if the threat was nothing more than a casual warning and he didn't care.

"Well...it's your funeral bat," he said nonchalantly, "Although my client might be happy to pay me extra for your death. I hear the Batman's a big pain in the ass for a lot of Gotham's crime bosses."

He then raised both arms and fired at Batman, spraying a volley of bullets at the nocturnal superhero. A rhythm of chattering guns and bullets rang out through the night sky, making anybody who heard the shots look up in fright or quicken their paces to make sure they were well out of the way of whatever gun fight was going on. Batman was quick to react, but not quite quick enough. The damage to his head had made his reaction a little slower so he had been pounded by some of the bullets while he was in mid-leap. They mostly bounced off his abdomen and legs, throwing his leap off course and sending him sprawling. Deadshot took a moment to clock his guns for another round, taking aim and preparing to fire. But Batman had managed to grab something off of his utility belt and he threw it just in time. It was a smoke bomb and it hit Deadshot right between the eyes. The bomb exploded, clouding Deadshot in smoke and making him stagger backwards. His mouth-plate prevented him from breathing any of it in so he wasn't reduced to a coughing, spluttering wreck like many who were hit by the bombs. He uses his red lens to try and spot Batman through the smoke. It was an optic piece that could pick out heat-signatures as well as lock onto his targets. He managed to pick out Batman, but not quick enough. The vigilante had rushed up to the assassin and thrown a terrific punch to the chin that caused Deadshot's head to snap backwards. He fell over onto his backside, almost amazed that Batman could punch so hard. He wasn't able to stand up for his opponent pounced on him, grabbing his wrists and forcing the guns away. He pressed down on Deadshot, keen to keep him pinned so he couldn't shot at him. The sharpshooter clenched his fists, firing his guns with the hope of making Batman loosen his grip with the noise pounding in his ears. Batman managed to fight off the awful sound and keep Deadshot down despite how loud the guns were.

He then yanked on Deadshot's arms and began to spin him around, still holding onto his wrists. He let go, sending Deadshot flying into a galvanized turbine nearby. The assassin hit it, groaning in pain from the impact of flesh and bone slamming into metal. It was lucky for him he had body armour on otherwise the impact might have broken his back. He picked himself up just as Batman came at him again. With his bat-themed costume, he truly was like a monster from a child's nightmare. Deadshot swung his fist up in a terrific uppercut that sent Batman stumbling backwards, a sickening crunch following as Batman felt his nose break. Blood began to pour down over his top lip and he winced as he put a hand over his nose. He held up an arm to block Deadshot as he punched downwards towards his head. All the training he had gone through to reach his current physical condition hadn't prepared him for an opponent like this. Deadshot was clearly very strong, agile and most frightening of all, armed to the teeth. Nothing could've prepared him for a foe like this. Still blocking Deadshot's punches, Batman allowed several thoughts to run through his head. There had to be some weakness to exploit on Deadshot. Every man had a weakness! He leapt back as Deadshot aimed a roundhouse kick at his face. The assassin may have missed but Batman wasn't safe yet. He saw Deadshot raise his arm and aim his arm-mounted gun at him again. He tried to dodge but he was a fraction too slow. The gunman fired, sending a bullet creasing across Batman's side. Although the tough material of his armour protected him from the worst of the shot, it was still enough to send Batman staggering to the side and grimacing in pain. Deadshot seemed to find this amusing, a soft chuckle coming from behind his mouth plate.

"Not bad Batman! Not bad!" he crowed, "I've never met somebody who could match blows with me before! Heh...mainly because they end up dead before they can fight me." he added, his exposed eye narrowing as he cracked a cruel smile behind his mask.

"Guess I'm the lucky one," Batman muttered. He didn't often like to joke or make banter, but in this case, it was a good idea to find anyway to keep the opponent talking. It could help him find a weakness to exploit if he had time to think.

"I'd say you're many things Batman, but lucky? I'm inclined to disagree on that part." Deadshot sneered.

He then raised both his arm guns and prepared to fire. But in the time that had been spent on the conversation, Batman had managed to reach into his utility belt and pull out a stun grenade. He quickly threw it at Deadshot just as his opponent opened fire. The guns hit the grenade, breaking it and releasing the stun flash it contained. The dazzling light hit Deadshot like a punch to the face, making him stagger backwards and wince from the flash. He closed his eyes and put an arm in front of himself to protect himself from the light. While he was momentarily blinded, Batman threw himself straight into the assassin. He was like a huge black bull charging at the matador. Deadshot wasn't even aware he was under attack until he found himself whisked off his feet and thrown down onto the ground. He grunted, the wind almost knocked completely out of him as Batman downed him. Desperate to keep him down, Batman grabbed the gunman's wrists and kept his arms away. Deadshot struggled, trying to throw Batman off of him. The vigilante then swung his head down, head-butting Deadshot between the eyes. That had been a mistake. Deadshot's mask was tough and Batman's head had still been throbbing from the blow to the head he'd received earlier. This attack had caused Batman to make his head hurt again and he released Deadshot to try and ease the pain. Now free, Deadshot slugged Batman in the face and knocked him aside. The assassin picked himself up and kicked Batman, taking him into the air for a brief second, and sending him rolling across the roof before coming to a stop near the edge. Batman groaned a sickly groan, his head pounding and his senses dizzy. He couldn't keep up the fight, not like this. He needed to retreat and buy himself time to recover. He pushed himself up onto his knees just as Deadshot aimed at him once more.

Batman found himself staring into the cold, singular eye of the gun as it trained on him. It was the very same eye of death that his parents had witnessed before their deaths. Cold, black and merciless. Deadshot spared a second to make sure he couldn't miss before muttering a single word.

"...bang!"

And with that, he fired. A single ear-splitting bang tore through the night sky like a thunderclap. Anyone nearby looked up in fear, wondering where the shooter was. But to the surprise and utter disbelief of Deadshot...he had managed to miss! Batman and thrown himself off the roof in the second it had taken Deadshot to fire. The bullet scraped the concrete of the roof, leaving a single groove in it, but it hadn't hit Batman. Shocked by this, Deadshot couldn't move for a minute or two. It was as if the shock of the situation had just hit him like a slap in the face. This was impossible! He never missed! How could this be?! He shook himself out of his surprised state and ran to the side of the roof, looking over it for any sign of Batman. His red lens scanned the darkness below for his prey. It allowed him to see in the dark so if Batman thought the shadows would hide him, he was mistaken. But he couldn't see any sign of the costumed crime fighter. Not even so much as a heat signature. It seemed that his opponent had realized he was beat and had made the wise decision to flee. Not that that mattered of course. Deadshot shrugged and turned away.

"So he turned chicken and ran. Least he knows when he's beat," the assassin sneered, "I'll come for him later, I've got another job to finish. Black Mask won't be happy if Dent isn't dead yet..."

He mentally added Batman to the hit-list he had formed in his head. Said list was very long and had a lot of names. He would make Batman pay for making him miss. But first, the District Attorney. Deadshot knew fully well that even a shot to the head didn't necessarily mean instant death. With improved medicine, surgery and medical treatment, even the deadliest of bullet wounds could be treated. He had also seen from where he was standing that his hit hadn't been perfect. He hadn't sent the bullet straight into Dent's head, he'd only scraped it. There was a chance he could be saved. Well he would make sure that Harvey would never wake up again. He ran towards the edge of the building and leapt off, beginning his search for Harvey Dent...


As for Batman, after he'd thrown himself off the building, he had been quick to abandon the battle and disappear into the night. He'd used his grappling hook to slow his fall so he landed softly on the ground below. Once he was sure he was far enough away from Deadshot and sure to be out of sight, he had signaled for the Batmobile to come to him. The headache was still there but he could feel it slowly easing. He gently massaged his forehead as he waited for the Batmobile. He already knew what he was going to do once it arrived. Even though Deadshot was still on the loose, he wasn't going to leave Harvey Dent vulnerable to another attack from him. The vigilante already expected what Deadshot was going to do next. He would make sure Dent was dead and would be hunting for him now. Batman was determined to make sure he got there first, and thanks to his many technological resources, he would be a few steps ahead of the assassin.

Soon enough, he heard the engine of his trademark vehicle approaching him. The Batmobile came to a screeching halt just beside the vigilante and Batman quickly climbed inside. As soon as he was seated and he closed the cockpit up, he started the car and drove off. He then pressed a button on the steering column, activating the car's communications system.

"Alfred. Are you there?" he asked.

"As always." came the blunt reply of his butler and father figure, "I saw the news just moments ago. Harvey Dent's been shot and is on his way to hospital now. No doubt you found the shooter?"

"More than that, I actually fought him," Batman replied, "He goes by the name of "Deadshot". He's not easy to miss, he wears a costume like you wouldn't believe."

"Indicating that your costume doesn't already count as "a costume like I wouldn't believe"." Alfred retorted.

"I need you to investigate this "Deadshot" person and see if you can find out anything about him," Batman ordered, "See if we can find anything we can use against him. He'll be coming for Dent to make sure he's really dead."

"I'll look into him immediately." Alfred declared, "Where are you heading now Master Bruce?"

"To hospital, to keep guard over Dent." the Gotham vigilante answered, "Do you know which one he's being taken to?"

"Miss Vale just reported a few seconds ago that he's just arrived at the Gotham Central Hospital," the Englishman replied, "And he's quite critical. I sincerely hope he makes it through."

"I'll see to it that he does..."

With the hospital in mind, Batman steered the Batmobile towards another junction and began heading off to the Gotham Central Hospital. Every minute passing by felt like a race against time and all he could do was pray against all odds that when he arrived at the hospital, he wouldn't have a corpse waiting for him in the hospital morgue...


Over at the Gotham Central Hospital, Harvey Dent was gently wheeled into one of the hospitals many rooms so that he could undergo treatment immediately. The doctors had already assessed the situation while he was being driven away in the ambulance. Dent was alive, but suffering from a massive head trauma thanks to the bullet skimming his head and required immediate medical attention. It was quite possible that they could lose him from the shock of the attack or blood loss if he wasn't seen to immediately. Of course, news had broken out about the attack. Dent's public speech was on live television so all of Gotham had seen the terrifying moment where somebody tried to attack him only to be stopped by Batman and then another assassin struck down the D.A. Vicki Vale was standing outside the hospital, microphone in hand and a grave look on her face as if she was saddened by what had happened and felt grim about being the one to report on it. This was one of those rare times where she would've happily let Jack Ryder steal her thunder.

"...I am speaking to you, live, in front of the GCH." Vicki reported, trying to keep her voice steady so she could speak, "As of now, District Attorney Harvey Dent has now arrived and his situation, while critical, is not fatal. I'm told that the doctors will get working on him immediately, but it remains to be seen if Harvey will survive this attack. Many people wonder if the Batman will show up to try and apprehend the one who took a shot at him..."

There was nobody in Gotham more concerned for Harvey's well-being than Gilda Dent. Upon watching her husband go down, she had broken down into hysterics and had had to be wrestled away from her love's body so that he could be taken away. It had been hard on Jim Gordon and his men to separate a grieving wife from her stricken husband but it had to have been done if he had any chance of survival. Once Dent had arrived at the hospital, Gilda had been allowed to visit and was currently in the waiting room, dreading the worst possible outcome for Harvey. The brunette knew that the shot had been terrible. Even if it had only scraped his head, it was still bad. She prayed with all her might that Harvey was going to pull through. Why had he decided to go through with this speech tonight?! He should've listened to her and not put himself in hot water! Gilda was already thinking on what to say when the time came to lecture her bed-bound husband.

While Gilda was waiting to see Harvey, Chief Officer Jim Gordon was standing outside the hospital with an old fashioned pipe in his hand. It was something passed down to him from his father before him and he liked to keep hold of it, even if he had been told several times that smoking was bad for him. How his daughter loved to lecture him on that! He lit up the tobacco in the pipe, which was a brand called "Wild Country". It was his favourite tobacco and he never smoked any other brand. He put the pipe to his lips and blew softly, smoke puffing out of the pipe hole. What a night this was! First he had to protect Harvey from any possible attack and upon failing that, he now had the job to protect Harvey from the assassin who would no doubt be coming to finish the job. Of all careers he could've chosen, why a police officer?! Had he known it was this dangerous, he would've picked something else a long time ago. Jim swept his eyes around, keeping watch for any signs of trouble. Smoke continued puffing out of his pipe as he blew on it.

"Dent makes his big speech, then out of nowhere comes the Batman...and then Dent gets shot. I daren't say "It couldn't possibly get any worse" as that's exactly what happens next." the officer muttered, "Who knows what my Babs will think to this when I tell her how my night at work went."

He knew Barbara well enough to know that she would always ask him how his time at work went. Why not? It was in a daughter's best interest to ask her father about his work. It was how families worked. Just as Jim was thinking about what to say to his daughter when the inevitable question came out, he heard the faint sound of an engine coming from somewhere. What was it? Another police car coming by? He looked around but he couldn't see anything. No flashing lights to indicate it was a police car. Maybe it was just another car passing by. Shrugging it off, Jim continued his guard duties, while still puffing on his pipe. Everything remained silent for a few minutes before he turned around...and gasped as the last person he expected to see was now standing before him. Batman had parked the Batmobile, the very engine that Jim had heard, and had departed his vehicle to sneak into the hospital to check on Harvey. He hadn't expected to see Jim Gordon around and had decided to see him. While surprised at his appearance, Jim didn't seem keen to arrest him. He just looked politely interested, almost pleased he was here.

"Whew, no wonder the criminals we lock away never see you coming. You come out of nowhere just like that!" Jim cried, his voice more a loud whisper for he didn't want to draw attention to Batman.

"Is Harvey Dent safe Jim?" Batman asked quickly.

"How do you know my..." Jim quickly regained himself and dismissed the thought for that wasn't important, "Ahem, he arrived at the hospital not too long ago. Harvey's currently being treated for his head wound though that's as much as I know. Dunno if he'll survive or not."

"Are you here to protect him?"

"That's right. I knew that whoever shot Harvey would wanna finish the job so I put myself here to keep watch over him. I have several other men placed strategically around the hospital. Whoever wanted Harvey dead, they'll NEVER get in without being spotted."

"Your men need to fall back Jim." the masked vigilante insisted, "I fought the assassin. He's no pushover and if he wants to get near Dent, he'll shoot every last one of them down before you can give the order to fire. The assassin is a man named Deadshot, or at least he calls himself Deadshot, and he's armed to the teeth. I barely managed to escape with my life before having to flee. He'll be coming for Dent and your men won't have a chance against him."

Jim listened to Batman's warnings and upon hearing the name "Deadshot", his face seemed to lose even more colour for he recognized it. Batman could see it in the chief officer's eyes that he was disturbed by this. He waited for Jim to collect himself so he could speak. Coughing slowly, Jim recovered.

"Deadshot...you're damn lucky you survived against him Batman!" he hissed gravely, "Deadshot is the world's deadliest assassin, or at the least he shares that title with the man known as "Deathstroke" that Star City's been terrorized by. Commissioner Loeb has him at Number 1 on Gotham's Most Wanted list with you directly beneath him! I'm fortunate enough to never have met Deadshot but I've heard all the stories from Loeb and any men who have somehow lived to tell about him. He never misses and his shots tend to be impractical, but somehow they manage to always find their mark! His aim is like nothing we've seen before! If he's the one targeting Dent then I'll pull my men back immediately! I can't risk their lives with that maniac on the lose!"

"I'll stop Deadshot and keep the District Attorney safe Jim." Batman declared, "I'm currently researching him to find a weakness I can exploit. That weakness will put a stop to his night of terror."

"If you were working for me Batman, I would happily refuse to let you go up against that living weapon!" Jim exclaimed, "But I suppose I can't stop you. And let's hope your research pays off."

"Maybe you can help with said research." the crimefighter suggested, "What else do you know about Deadshot?"

Jim paused for a moment to think it over. He didn't take long to reply.

"Not much is known about him aside from what's on file back at GCPD." Jim explained, "At most, we know his name is, supposedly, Floyd Lawton. We don't know if it's his real name or a fake name. We know that he had a brother whom he killed by accident at a young age. Possible connection with his life as an assassin we think, could've turned to killing after that incident. Probably really damaged him psychologically. He seems to have no real regard for human life, but that goes without saying, although rumour has it that there's only one person he genuinely cares about."

Batman filed the information away in his incredible brain, hoping it could be useful. He waited for Jim to carry on, wondering what he was going to say next.

"We're not sure what that one person is given again, it's just a rumour, and we have no concrete evidence to support this." the policeman said, "But the rumour says that Deadshot actually has a child of his own. We don't know if it's a son or a daughter or what the child's name is. I wouldn't have associated Deadshot with being a family man but hey, even killers can have some surprising secrets I guess."

Batman nodded agreeably. If the rumour was true then Jim had just helped him identify Deadshot's weakness! He was about to leave and head into the hospital before Jim stopped him. The caped crusader turned to hear what Jim had to say.

"He's in Room 193 in Corridor 9." he said, "You can maybe stand by his window or by his door. You know...you seem quite determined to save Harvey don't you?" he asked suddenly.

"He's a man I happen to admire. I'd rather he didn't end up a victim of Gotham's criminals." Batman replied simply.

"You're nothing like what Loeb thinks that much is certain. You're like Gotham's own protector, almost like a white knight only darker..." Gordon murmured, "A Dark Knight perhaps? Tell me Batman, why do you do this? What exactly do you get out of it?"

Batman allowed the question to hang in the air for a minute before he responded. He gave only a single sentence. A brief sentence, no more than three words, but one that cut straight to the point.

"A better Gotham."

He walked towards the hospital, lurking in the shadows so he wouldn't be seen. Jim just repeated Batman's last three words in his head, hearing them echo as he pondered of them. A better Gotham...quite a noble cause to strive for. He was none the wiser about this mysterious vigilante but he had a better idea on what he was. He maybe operating outside of the law, but he clearly had the city's best interest at heart. A true hero if ever there was one. He turned away to leave Batman to get to his work, blowing on his pipe again.

"A better Gotham..." he repeated one last time, "...I think we all strive for that in this city."

As Jim continued his nightly patrol, Batman pressed on the comlink in his cowl again. He had to let Alfred know what he'd learnt from Jim.

"Alfred?" he asked.

"Right here sir. No doubt you're wondering about my research into this "Deadshot" fellow." Alfred replied.

"Have you found anything yet?" Batman asked, "I came across Jim Gordon earlier and he gave me some information on Deadshot."

"My word, you managed to speak to a cop and NOT get arrested. I am impressed..." the butler replied snarkily, "What has he told you?"

Batman quickly relayed the information Jim had passed onto him, including the rumour about Deadshot having one person he cares about. Alfred listened to everything his master said before taking over.

"I came across that rumour when I was looking him up too." Pennyworth explained, "I dug in a bit and ended up coming across a phone call he had with a previous client from a previous assignment. He does indeed have a child. In that phone call, he mentions the fact he has a daughter in it and thus, I looked into that."

"Any names you found?"

"It appears to be Zoe Lawton. It would appear Master Bruce that we have identified Deadshot's weakness."

Batman nodded agreeably. Deadshot only cared for one person in the world. That person was his daughter. Batman was honestly, rather disgusted to think that any woman in the world would've been crazy enough to actually sire a child with a man like Deadshot. But he now had something to use against him. Question was...could he risk it?

"I hope you're not suggesting we put the girl's life in danger just to make him surrender." Alfred put in, reading Bruce's thoughts. His voice sounded worried, clearly hoping that Batman's answer would be what he wanted to hear.

"No, we won't put her in danger. She'll merely put an end to it..." Batman replied.


A couple of hours had passed since Batman had arrived at the hospital. Upon finding Dent's room, Batman had grappled up to the windowsill and was now standing by the D.A.'s window. He could see him lying in bed through the window, taking in the sight of his bandaged head and the doctors working on him. During those two hours, he had watched them treat Harvey's head trauma as best as they could and had seen Gilda come in to see how her husband was doing. She had been hysterical at first but had visibly calmed down upon being briefed by the doctors. Batman heard them speak and had even watched as Gilda's face lit up with a smile of relief. They told him he was stable and that although Harvey was in a coma, he wouldn't be in it for long and would eventually come out of it now the trauma was beginning to lessen. The D.A. was going to live! The Dark Knight allowed himself the rare luxury of a smile upon hearing this. His friend had cheated death once again. But it wasn't over yet and he knew it. Deadshot was still out there and he'd be coming to finish the job. To keep an eye out for him, Batman had unpacked a pair of hi-tech binoculars from his utility belt and had switched it to night-vision so he could spot Deadshot coming, even if it was completely dark outside.

He had explained his plan to Alfred and although neither of them really liked it, they both agreed it was the best thing to do. Putting a child in danger was the last thing Batman would've wanted to do. He thought back to Lian Harper and how he'd tried his damnedest to keep her safe no matter what happened to him. He was confident that this Zoe Lawton would put an end to the danger rather than getting into the danger herself. He had already planned on what would happen if the child didn't put a stop to Deadshot. At the very least she would distract him enough so he could incapacitate him. A stun grenade to blind him and then a quick blow to the head would do the trick. With his training, Batman had made it a priority to ALWAYS have a contingency plan.

There had been no sign of Deadshot in the couple of hours that had gone by. Batman had felt every single second pass by as the night dragged on. It was the one downside to being on the alert, time just seemed to slow down and take an age to pass. Seconds felt like minutes and minutes felt like hours. Batman still refused to let his guard down though. He would not give Deadshot ANY chance to kill Harvey. He wouldn't even let himself rest for a minute if he had to. He was quite pleased to see that Jim had been good to his word and had pulled his men back at least. He hadn't spotted a single police officer on site ever since he'd watched the last one leave an hour ago. At least only his life would be at risk for now and nobody else would get caught up in the crossfire. It was a priority Batman vowed to stick to: never let anybody else's life be put at risk except his own.

Then suddenly, the Dark Knight caught sight of something dark green moving in the corner of his binoculars. He turned them to the side and saw a dark green shape moving on a building that was much further away than it looked to him due to the binoculars being zoomed in very far. He put the binoculars away and switched on his detective vision to see if the man was armed. The world turned blue all around him once again and the man he'd spotted seemed to turn inside out as his skeleton was made visible to him. It glowed red, registering the man as armed. Deadshot? Could be him, but it could easily be just another man with a gun. He might not even be targeting Dent. Batman was still going to take him down anyway. No killer with a gun walked free while he was around! The bat-themed vigilante threw himself off the windowsill and fired his grappling gun, grabbing hold of a lamppost just ahead and quickly retracting it so it pulled him through the air at top speed. He catapulted over the lamppost and hurled through the air, gliding towards a building before grappling up onto it and climbing onto the roof. As soon as he was up, he ran towards the edge and leapt towards another building. His keen eyes caught sight of the man he'd seen earlier, who was now only a couple of buildings away from him. He had been right from the start, it was Deadshot! He had come to finish what he'd started at last!

The bullet-laden assassin had clearly been setting up what would've been the shot to finish off Harvey Dent. He was holding a rifle in his hands and was down on his knees, aiming at the hospital and preparing to fire. He was about to lie down and take aim when Batman arrived on the building he was on. The soft sound of Batman's boots landing on concrete didn't deter Deadshot. The sound had been too quiet for him to hear. This gave Batman the perfect opportunity to aim his grappling gun at Deadshot and fire, snagging his rifle with the cable. He retracted the cable, tearing the gun straight out of the assassin's hands and bringing it to him. Deadshot was up on his feet in an instant, clocking the guns on his arms and aiming angrily. His exposed eye was a tiny dot of fury, angered to have been interrupted during an assassination attempt for a second time. He didn't get the chance to shoot for Batman swung the rifle around and walloped him, knocking him clean off his feet and crashing down onto his side. A spasm of pain shot through Deadshot's shoulder and spread to his fingers, numbing his arm for a moment. He tried to pick himself up but Batman pounced on him and grabbed hold of both his arms, pining him down. Both men grunted as they struggled against each other, trying to break free of the grapple.

"Should I even be surprised you decided to show up again and meddle with my business?!" Deadshot snarled.

"You should've been better prepared." Batman retorted.

"Oh I will be. Because next time I try to kill Dent, you won't be there to save him!" the gunman declared.

He swung his head forward, slamming it between Batman's eyes and momentarily disorienting him. This allowed Deadshot to throw the Gotham vigilante off of him and get back to his feet. Normally, he would've been tempted to shoot Batman dead but he knew that he'd just waste ammo by doing so since Batman was incredibly fast and manoeuvrable and would just dodge his shots like last time. He'd wait until Batman was too weakened to move before finishing him off, that way he wouldn't miss. He instead grabbed Batman and hoisted him up off the floor. He dragged the Dark Knight over to the edge of the building and threw him straight off. That would surely finish him off or at best, severely cripple him! But as the crimefighter plummeted, he quickly spread out his cape and glided down to safety, slowing his descent and leaving his opponent speechless. He was so stunned that he couldn't even move for a minute. He shook it off and unloaded a grappling hook from one of the pouches on his trousers.

"Man, you keep surprising me." the assassin sighed irritably, hooking the hook on the edge of the building and using the cable to climb down to the ground.

As soon as Batman landed, he spun around and saw Deadshot climbing down after him. Had he become more ruthless, he would've easily drawn out a Batarang and cut Deadshot's line so he'd fall to his death. But Batman couldn't kill, not even if it was a man like Deadshot. He instead waited until Deadshot was close to the ground before he did just that, throwing the Batarang with perfect accuracy and severing the cable Deadshot was climbing down with. The assassin cried out as he fell the last few feet to the ground, his fall briefly slowed by an awning directly beneath him. He tore straight through the awning and landed on top of a table, breaking the legs and knocking it down onto its side, knocking over some chairs around it at the same time. The assassin groaned, wondering what had just happened before Batman came charging towards him. He was grabbed, hoisted off his feet and thrown into another table, knocking it over and spilling whatever was sitting on it. Deadshot picked himself up and kicked the table towards Batman. Batman caught it and threw it aside, only just realizing Deadshot had done that to distract him as his opponent landed a powerful punch in his jaw. The Gotham vigilante staggered, almost falling over. Deadshot elbowed him in the stomach, then punched upwards and then spun around in a roundhouse kick that slammed directly into his opponent's shoulder. Batman came crashing down directly in front of a chair, which he quickly grabbed and swung it directly into Deadshot. The chair was reduced to splinters upon impact and left Deadshot so stunned that he didn't even know what happened next as Batman followed it up by driving his knee into his gut.

The gunman spluttered, feeling the injuries he'd just received but still determined not to give up. It would take more than a fall and some tables and chairs to stop him! He decided to resort to his favourite tactic, no longer caring if he wasted any ammo. At the most, he'd at least get lucky and maybe wound Batman with his hailfire of bullets. He aimed his arm-mounted guns and opened fire. The terrifying sound of guns chattering tore through the night sky, the barrels flashing and bullets spraying everywhere. Batman was hit by some of the shots, his suit absorbing most of the impact. He dived behind a table, but not for long as it was quickly disintegrated by the volley of bullets coming his way. Batman aimed his grappling gun at a lamppost, hoping to get up high and out of Deadshot's way. His grapple gun grabbed the lamppost and he pulled himself up towards it. But Deadshot saw what he was doing and aimed up, hitting him several times and causing him to let go of his gun for the constant slamming of bullets into his body was too much for him. He plummeted to the ground, rolling to a stop and grimacing from the impact. Deadshot laughed coldly as he approached his enemy. Batman stood up, but was brought back down just as quickly for Deadshot suddenly shot him directly in the knee. Batman screamed in anguish as his kneecap shattered and blood oozed out of the wound. He was stuck lying on the ground, completely helpless as the man who would finish him off came closer. His exposed eye gleamed as he took aim.

"Don't feel too bad Batman. You at least can die knowing you lasted longer than any opponent I've ever faced." the marksman sneered, "And I'll tell Harvey you said hi too..."

The gun on his right arm was aimed directly at Batman's head. His opponent was down, too injured to get up. He couldn't miss, he was going to make his second kill of the night! But just as he was about to shoot, the sound of tyres screeching across the tarmac made him look up in surprise. There was a car coming, and not just any car either. It was a sports car, very sleek and elegant in design and clearly very expensive. The car screeched to a halt directly in front of Batman and Deadshot. The mercenary stared in surprise, wondering what was happening.

"You got a friend in there?" he sneered, wondering how desperate Batman must be to ask some punk in a sports car to come and save him.

"Yes. And he's also got somebody who wants to see you." Batman replied bluntly.

The reply had puzzled Deadshot. Who in the whole wide world would ever want to see him? He watched as somebody got out of the car. Said somebody appeared to be a stereotypical English butler with a serious face and little hair. The sight of the man made the gunman almost want to laugh. This man couldn't look more stereotypical even if he wanted to! But the gentleman wasn't the only one to get out of the car. Somebody else emerged from the vehicle, staring at Deadshot with wide, innocent eyes. The sight of this person made the assassin flinch, taken aback at who it was. It was his daughter, Zoe Lawton. Zoe didn't look very old, probably the same age as Lian Harper whom Batman had protected from Black Mask's goons the other night. She had large brown eyes and had her black hair cut in a bob style. She was dressed in a pink dress worn over a lighter pink shirt. She had the sort of face that could melt the heart of even the most stone-hearted of people. Her presence seemed to have the desired effect for Deadshot was completely frozen, unable to so much as speak. It was as if Zoe being here had completely switched him off and he could no longer move.

"Dad?" Zoe asked, staring incredulously at him, "Is that you? Why are you dressed like that? Are you going to kill somebody?"

She seemed horrified at the sight of her father covered with bullet belts and wearing guns on his arms. Deadshot didn't move, nor did he say anything. He was trying to process many things at once. How did Batman know he had a daughter? How was he even able to find her?! Nobody but him was supposed to know where Zoe was! His paralyzed state quickly turned to anger as he looked back at Batman, the gun still pointing at him.

"You bastard...how could you bring her here?!" Deadshot snarled viciously, "You dare put her in danger?! YOU DARE?!"

"She's only in danger because you're the one holding the gun." Batman retorted, "For her sake, I suggest you put them down and turn yourself in."

Deadshot seemed to be unwilling to comply, still pointing the gun at Batman. His frame shook as if he was trying to hold back all the anger and rage that was building up in him. But as he prepared to kill, Zoe ran over to Batman and threw herself down over him, shielding his head from her father. Now Zoe was the one in Deadshot's line of fire. The assassin didn't budge.

"Move Zoe." he demanded.

"Please dad! Don't do it!" the young girl pleaded, "Please! Don't kill him daddy!"

Deadshot stared hard at his daughter, who only looked back at him with large, tearful eyes. The assassin was coiled like a spring, ready to pull the trigger. He had to kill Batman, he just had to! He could do it! It was that simple! But Zoe seemed unwilling to move. She remained where she was, keeping Batman's head out of sight. She remained still, never moving an inch. Batman waited to see what would happen, his hand already clutching the stun grenade he would throw if he had to. The seconds passed by tensely, nobody daring to so much as breathe. Deadshot began to shake, but this wasn't from anger. It was guilt and shame. Guilt from the fact he was actually pointing a gun at his own daughter and shame that she had been brought into this. He had known that this would happen eventually and should've been prepared. A small tear escaped from Deadshot's exposed eye but he didn't wipe it away. He didn't want to show weakness, not even to his own child. After what seemed like an age passed, Deadshot...finally lowered his arm. He didn't just lower his arm though, he also unclipped the guns from around his arms. They came down on the ground with a clatter. He then got down onto his knees, his arms hanging limp by his sides. Zoe stood up away from Batman and embraced her father, clearly pleased he hadn't killed him. Deadshot embraced her back, completely forgetting about Batman for the time being.

"Daddy, why were you going to kill that man? Are you a murderer? Why are you a murderer?!" Zoe wailed, completely distraught.

"It's a long and complicated story..." Deadshot murmured, "Daddy's only sorry you got caught up in this Zoe."

Alfred helped Batman back up, draping one arm around his shoulders to help him stand. The vigilante still had blood oozing from his shattered knee. The two shared a look of relief between them, pleased to see that this had gone well.

"Well thank heavens for that..." the butler sighed.

"Did you contact Jim?" Batman asked curiously.

"I called him as soon as I picked up Miss Lawton." Alfred explained, "He'll be arriving any moment now."

As if right on cue, the sound of police sirens cut through the night as several police cars arrived, screeching to a halt and their occupants filing out to quickly surround Deadshot. The assassin didn't even resist as Jim Gordon and Officers Snyder, Kane and Finger stood around him, ready to attack if he so much as sneezed at them...


"Tonight went better than expected, I'll admit." Pennyworth said as he finished wrapping a bandage around Bruce's damaged knee, "I had honestly expected a bit of a massacre."

"Let's just be grateful that it didn't go from bad to worse." Wayne said nonchalantly.

Once Deadshot had been arrested and bundled into a police car, Batman had been helped into the sports car and quickly driven back to Wayne Manor for medical attention. Zoe Lawton had been taken into custody by Jim and Deadshot had urged him to contact her mother, a Michelle Torres, and get her to pick the girl up as soon as possible. Torres would look after her and keep her safe for now. Jim had been quick to thank Batman for helping he and his men put away the most dangerous man in Gotham. The city would be much safer with the deadliest marksman in the world now behind bars. He doubted that Deadshot would be walking free anytime soon. Batman hadn't said much, preferring to just leave as quickly as possible. Now he was back home, lying on a comfortable sofa as Alfred tended to his shattered knee.

"I think you'll have to hang up the cape and cowl for a bit Master Bruce." Alfred said matter-of-factly, "A shattered kneecap takes a while to recover you know."

"I'll be out there again the moment I can walk again." Bruce declared, "I can't stay out of commission for long. There's still the Big Three and Copperhead to deal with and they won't wait for me."

"I would point out how you can let the police handle them for the time being. But I'm not going to because I know you'll just ignore me." the Englishman sighed, sounding a little irritated, "Nevertheless, you must have at least a couple of weeks R&R before you go out as Batman again."

"I'll rest as long as I feel I need to." the billionaire insisted, "So how was you able to find Zoe?"

"It wasn't easy." Alfred admitted, "Deadshot had made sure she would be hard to find. I just happened to pick up a chance call that Zoe made to her mother, asking if she'd seen her father at all. I traced the call back to its location and thus, was able to find her. I just knocked on the door and when she answered, I just let her know I knew where her father was and drove straight to your location. Thank heavens your utility belt carries a tracking beacon for whenever I need to find you..."

"We both agreed that would come in handy one day." Bruce nodded, "At least Zoe's with somebody more desirable than her father right now. I feel sorry for her, knowing now that her father's a hired killer. If my father had been anything like that..."

He paused, not wanting to carry on. What a horrible thought that would be, if his father was a bad man who killed for money like Deadshot! He would be sorry he ever tried to avenge his death. Alfred nodded understandingly.

"I'm sure the poor girl will recover from the shock of it all." he said sympathetically, "At least Harvey won't die now that ghastly man's behind bars."

"I have a feeling whoever wanted him dead will try and finish the job." Bruce said cryptically, "Deadshot won't be the only one that'll be hired to do it. With him arrested, his client will just hire someone else."

"And who do you suppose that client is?"

"One of the Big Three obviously. And given Black Mask was blaming the deaths of his men on me in yesterday's paper, I have a strong feeling it'll be him..."

The two men mulled this over in their minds, both agreeing that Black Mask was the likeliest suspect. If he was the one who had hired Deadshot, then who knew who he would hire next to try and kill the D.A. All they knew was that Harvey wasn't safe yet, not while the Big Three were still in power and eager to kill anybody who tried to paint Batman in a good light. Bruce knew for a fact that his best friend would be seeing him in the cape and cowl again very soon...


Meanwhile at Sionis Manor, Black Mask had been watching the news very closely and hadn't been very happy to hear that Deadshot was now behind bars. He wasn't worried about Deadshot exposing him though for he knew that the gunman would keep quiet. He never told anybody who his clients were so at the very least, he would still be in the dark. But the fact his best assassin had been beaten by Batman and was now incarcerated was enough to make him go insane. How did he do it?! How could Batman defeat the best killer in the world?! He had made a complete mess of his study in a fit of rage, screaming like mad throughout the whole thing. Harvey was still alive, Batman was seen as a hero for protecting him! How could everything go so wrong in the span of one night?!

His girlfriend, Tiffany Ambrose, had heard the rampage and had peeked in to see what was happening. She had gasped in horror upon seeing her boyfriend overturn his desk and rip the drawers out, sending papers scattering everywhere. Black Mask saw her and was quick to demand that she leave. He wasn't angry to see her, he just didn't want to hurt her in his blind rage.

"Leave Tiff. Your Roman Sionis needs some alone time..." he muttered.

"You sure Si? Cause I could maybe help ya out in anyway I can..." Tiffany protested.

"GET! OUT!"

The Brooklyn woman didn't dare argue back with her boyfriend. She quickly closed the door and left him in peace. Once the industrialist was alone again, he let out one final roar of anger before strolling over to a seat he hadn't destroyed and slumped down in it to let himself settle down. As much as he'd hated his parents back when they were alive, they did have the occasional words of wisdom that he knew he should abide to. Every cloud has a silver lining and things may look bad now but they would soon get good again. He could just as easily hire somebody else to kill Dent. Black Mask ran his hands over his masked features, feeling the anger easing away in his nerves. He let out a relieved sigh as he began to relax.

"That's better..." he murmured, "Now then, Floyd's incarcerated so if I wanna axe the D.A. off, I'll just call another assassin. I have plenty of options. Deathstroke, The Electrocutioner, that Shiva woman from the Yakuza gangs in Japan, maybe even Cheshire! If Harvey thinks he's safe from me, he's got another thing coming! And Batman better watch out for I could easily send any of those guys against him too!"

He lay back in his seat, tapping the mouth section of his skull-shaped mask thoughtfully.

"Not tonight though. They'll be expecting that. I'll wait a night or two and then I'll send an assassin after Dent...and Batman too." he added gleefully, "That freak will be sorry he ever crossed paths with Black Mask!"

Then suddenly, the door opened up and in walked Tiffany once again. She looked nervous, as if entering the lion's den and hoping she wasn't about to be bitten. Black Mask leapt out of his chair angrily.

"I thought I told ya ta piss off Tiff! I ain't ready ta see anybody tonight!" he exploded.

"S-s-sorry handsome!" Tiffany stammered, "B-b-but dis is urgent! The boys j-j-just got back ta me with some terrible news!"

The masked crime lord stared incredulously at his moll as if she'd said something incredibly silly. He could feel the anger welling back up in his bloodstream once again.

"What news...?" he snarled.

"We just lost some of our territory in Park Row!" Tiffany explained, "Our boys there were slaughtered expect for a few, who came back ta tell me da news!"

"Who did it?! Who's taking my territory?!" Black Mask demanded.

The blonde woman gulped as if unsure whether to answer his question before replying. She said four words. Four words that Black Mask had hoped he wouldn't be hearing again anytime soon. Four words that would make his night even worse than it already was.

"The Red Hood Gang!"


Oh my gosh...looks like somebody's declaring war on Black Mask! But who would be crazy enough to do that? Aside from Thorne and Falcone of course. XD Who are the Red Hood Gang? Will they control Gotham? And most of all...can Batman stop them? Tune in next time for "The Red Hood"...