Hey, guys! Sorry for taking so long, but with finals over and the Christmas buzz beginning, I think ill be ready to do more of these chapters. At this point story-wise, I'm halfway through the story, and things are about to heat up. I'd also like to thank the people who have joined in reading this constantly; you inspire me!
I can confirm my Christmas surprise should be coming by the end of the month!
Here are some review responses:
Dredd2012: Thanks, thought that liquid isn't Venom. It's named-dropped in chapter 3.
Shian1998: Thanks! The answer to that is in here.
And without further ado, chapter nine of Darknight Universe!
When Garnet's specs looked at Batman, they were a lot darker than usual. This seemed to convey her mood at the moment- urgently worried.
"I need your help," she had said. The words sunk in quicker than she'd anticipated, so she fretted regarding if he was going to react violently.
Thankfully, Batman did not attack or reach for something. Instead. His posture remained the same. "First, who are you, not to mention the rest of your team? And secondly, what do you need help with?"
"My name is Garnet," she said. "I am an alien known as a Gem and the leader of the heroes known as the Crystal Gems."
"Gems?" Robin quipped. "That doesn't sound familiar."
"That's because it shouldn't," replied Garnet. "We're not from this dimension."
Batman's brows connected as it suddenly came to him. "…Of course," he said. "But why?"
"We were fighting an evil Gem named Emerald when this container of hers went off. Somehow, in some way, we wound up in Gotham City. We've been trying to get back ever since then, but when we came across Wrath, he was planning to attack the police." She gave Batman a glare as she said this. "We stopped him when his bomb went off, and I'm sure you would've done the same thing."
"We jumped to conclusions," Batman admitted with honesty. "I apologize for that."
"Thank you," said Garnet. "To answer your other question, we need help getting home."
"And where is home?" Robin asked. The wind brushed against his hoodie as he talked.
"Beach City, a small town near the other half of this continent, I believe," Garnet said. We checked, and there isn't one here, which confirms we're not in the same dimension."
"If you got sent here," Robin said, "what do you need to get home? A portal?"
"No. It was this container for what we call a cluster Gem – bits and pieces of shattered gems turned into monstrosities." Garnet took her hands together and squashed them tightly, using them as an example of what it looked like. "If we can find it, it might be able to send us back to where we were in the first place."
Batman looked at Garnet with a greater sense of understanding. In their first meeting, he'd thought of her as nothing more than a two-dimensional villain. But now, he'd gotten to understand her and what she really was. Besides, he couldn't in good conscience leave her and her allies to be stuck in somewhere they didn't belong. He of all people knew the importance of family.
"Hh," he grunted. "We'll help you get back."
"We will?" Robin said, surprise evident in his voice.
"Thank you," Garnet replied. She got closer and held out one of her massive fists. Batman was about to inquire about how shaking it would work when it morphed into a regular – of alien origin – hand. He promptly shook it and let go.
"I think we should get the rest of the Gems," said Garnet. "We need to trust each other if we're to get back home.
"Agreed," Batman said. "But where are they?"
"Follow me." As soon as she had said that, the imposing Gem turned and jumped off of the rooftop. The dynamic duo looked to see she was running vast distances across the buildings, not even breaking a sweat. Taking inspiration, Batman launched a grapnel and zipped towards her path.
"Ugh," Robin moaned before following his father in pursuit of their new ally.
…
Peridot meandered back and forth on the small steps near where the Lady of Gotham stood. Everybody else sat on the ground, either gazing at their weapons or making small talk.
"When do you think she's getting back?" Steven asked Pearl. The warrior Gem turned her body towards him and pondered on it.
"Knowing Garnet," Pearl said, "she'll probably return sometime soon. She should be okay."
"Correct, Pearl," a voice said. Everyone nearly jumped at the sight of Garnet, who was standing right next to the group and as if she'd been there the whole time. What was most surprising, though, was the fact that Batman and Robin were standing next to her.
Pearl readied her spear. "Garnet, Batman's here!"
"I know," Garnet said nonchalantly. "I was the one to bring them here."
The shock seemed to intensify on everyone's faces after she said this. "Wait, you brought the clods here? Why?" exclaimed Peridot.
Before Garnet could elaborate further, Batman stepped forward. "Look, I know that you don't trust me. I get it; we thought you were villains and attacked you without reason. And it was wrong to assume that." He gave Garnet a little nod before continuing on. "But Garnet told me of your problem, and I'm going to try and do everything I can to help you all get home."
"Well," said Amethyst, "that sounds nice."
Steven walked closer and looked up at Batman, who in turn looked down at the boy. "If you think you can get us home, then thanks."
He couldn't see it, but the dark knight felt something tough about the youth. He had a spark and fierceness to him, hidden within his sweet appearance, that made him more than he seemed. He had to wonder what pain or events had driven him to where he was now.
And then Batman did something he almost never did; he smirked.
"You're welcome."
"So how are you planning we need to get home?" Lapis said.
Robin turned to the water Gem and leveled a snarky gaze in her direction. "By bringing you back to our base, of course. We can consult each other like normal people do."
"Robin, enough," said Batman. "He's correct - our base has shelter and technology capable of probably giving an idea where your canister is."
All of the Gems looked at Batman and Robin suspiciously for a second, their eyes followed by a silence. After a good handful of seconds passed, Connie and Steven walked forwards and smiled.
"Let's do it," Steven said.
"I trust him," Connie said.
"Then that's our cue," Garnet said. "Gems, let's roll out!"
…
A police car turned Kingston Avenue, watching out for some pedestrian ones in the process. Sitting in the seats were Bullock and Montoya. Harvey munched on a pink donut while Renee held onto the driving wheel, looking particularly determined.
"Renee, you can take a breather once in a while," Bullock said as he took another frosting-coated bite of his treat. "Things don't always make sense."
"That's not the point, Harvey!" she shot back intensely. "These...things, they just popped up and are loose around the city! Not even that, they blew up the warehouse...for all we know, they could be terrorists!"
"Look," he replied, "Until we know for sure, we shouldn't speculate."
"I guess…" Renee relaxed and cooled down, focusing on making her turn signal on for a left turn. Just as she was about to do it, a voice picked up from the small radio jammed between the two of them.
"All units, 10-34 in progress," a thick voice stated. "10-34 on Finger Ave heading towards Adams Boulevard."
The two tuned to each other, realizing they were on the cusp of that street. Renee snatched the radio before Harvey could lick his fingers and pressed the button on it. "Dispatch, this is Detectives Montoya and Bullock. We're closest to the 10-34. We'll check it out."
"Understood," the voice on the radio replied.
"Who started the riot?" Harvey asked. "Bane? Blockbuster? Amygdala?"
"Could be just about anyone," Renee remarked. "Like you - oh, my god."
The detective's car had swerved onto Finger Avenue, and it was far from what they'd expected. Distressed citizens ran towards them, screaming in panic. The closest cars were either engulfed in flames or completely wrecked. To add insult to injury, some lampposts had fallen over and were sizzling with dangerous electricity.
"What could have done this?" Renee asked seriously.
"How about that!" Bullock pointed a thick finger towards the northwest building. Renee saw where he was indicating to and squinted. In her line of sight, she saw a man obscured by shadow. He stepped closer to the edge of the building, and then she realized who it was. It was Two-Face, but he looked drastically different. His trademark black-and-white clothing had shades of every possible color on it. Small jagged blobs sprouted from his chest and arms themselves, and his burned face portion has crystals melded into it. If he wasn't ugly before, he sure was now.
"The hell happened to him?" Renee said.
Before Bullock could answer, Two-Face bellowed and leaped off the roof in an inhuman movement. He dived right for the car and the two detectives in it.
"Watch out!" Harvey screamed.
