Canis and Chiroptera Way
Chapter Ten
Neco: to kill
"Another day, another battle," Leon muttered as he walked into the police cruiser parking lot. He was unsurprised to see the lot was empty and that his partner for the patrol was nowhere to be seen. Probably still bumming a hotdog off another vendor, Leon thought as he opened the car door. He retrieved the snowbrush from inside the vehicle. When he could see out the windshield and windows, he got inside and started driving.
The radio crackled with static but for the most part the ride was silent. Snow was falling from the sky. The streets were empty and most stores were closed. Those that were open were closing for the night. It was hard to believe it was Christmas Eve already. It was even harder to believe that he had been in Gotham so long. With his track record of bad luck it was a wonder he had survived so long. He halted at a red light signalling to turn left. He sighed as he looked around. It almost felt like home. Of course, it was only an illusion. His home had been destroyed long before Raccoon City had been destroyed.
He glanced at the light and was unimpressed to see that the light had changed. Wonder if it is broken. While he had been at the police academy prior to Raccoon City he often walked across a busy intersection. On weekdays, the lights would change regularly so that pedestrians could cross easily. However, on weekends you'd be lucky to cross within five minutes of waiting. He seemed to be stopped at another one of those lights. Leon sighed and glanced at his mirrors. No one was around. He debated on the lawlessness of the action before hitting his turning signal. The lights on his dashboard changed so that instead of flashing left the signal was flashing right. He eased the vehicle into the right lane and completed the turn.
The buildings surrounded the street became less until the road suddenly ended in a parking lot with streetlights. At the end of the lot was a large greenhouse. Leon groaned as he pulled into the lot. He parked the car and leaned over the passenger seat to reach for the glove compartment. Inside was a map which he removed. Although he had been living in the city for a year there were still pockets of Gotham that he didn't know how to navigate. Within seconds, he was back on track and was about to pull out of the lot when he spotted something in his rear view mirror. Behind him was the greenhouse. Its roof was covered in a light blanket of snow. The oddity was that the lights were on. He glanced at the dash clock and saw that it was past reasonable operating hours even for the summer months.
An employee working overtime? he wondered. Doubt it on Christmas Eve.
The lights turned off and the area was bathed in darkness except for the streetlights in the parking lot. Leon frowned as he waited for the employee or another vehicle to appear. After five minutes he was still alone in the parking lot. A back exit?
He started to shift the car into drive but his hand froze above the gear shift. The light had come on again. A shadow was racing towards the front door. Something reached out and pulled the shadow deeper into the greenhouse. A scream pierced the air before the lights went dark again. Leon paused long enough to radio his location and intentions and to turn his lights on as a beacon. The radio crackled as he pushed open the door. The dispatcher was trying to caution him about something but Leon ignored it as he shut the door.
The door to the greenhouse was open and Leon entered weapon first. He half expected the Batman to drop from the ceiling but he was disappointed. Inside Christmas plants and arrangements lined the shelves. Poinsettias and other arrangements watched as he entered. His training dictated that he announce his presence but he remained silent. In Raccoon City, mutated plants had attacked him spraying something painful and poisonous at him. He also vaguely recalled reading something about dangerous plants in the database but he couldn't remember specifics. However, those were reasons enough to remain silent as he searched the area. A few times he thought he heard movement but he never saw anything. Of course he was surrounded by plants. If one was able to walk, it would just need to freeze when he turned to be hidden.
A shadow appeared on the wall in front of him. He turned and saw nothing. He took a few steps forward. His breathing shallow as he tried to remain as silent as possible. No footsteps echoed his. He turned again. Nothing. He frowned as he searched the darkness for danger. What was he doing? He had no guarantee anything sinister had occurred in the greenhouse. The scream could have been a worker tripping over a power cord or something. At the very least, he should have brought a flashlight or something so he could see.
He froze as he heard footsteps behind him and a whisper of a cape moving. "Batman?"
"You should get out of here."
Leon relaxed and turn to face the other man. In the dim light creeping in from the windows, he could make out the man's frown. "I saw something odd and came to check it out."
"Did you find anything?"
Leon shook his head. "Nothing but it's hard to tell when it's so dark in here."
He saw the Batman nod before holding out his hand. A beam of light shone from it, momentarily blinding Leon who raised his arms to shield his eyes. The Batman started to walk deeper into the greenhouse.
"There's no point in sheath. She already knows we're here."
"Who?" Leon asked as he followed the man. His weapon carefully raised so that he wouldn't hit the man in front of him.
"Poison Ivy."
A girlish laugh caused both men to spin to look back the way they had come. In the light of Batman's flashlight stood a woman dressed in green, leaf-like material. Impish green eyes smirked at them from under a mane of red hair. On her arm was a silver, miniature crossbow.
"Merry Christmas, Batman," she said as she raised her weapon. Arrows flew in their direction. Leon ducked behind a shelf and peeked around. He ducked back as an arrow barely avoided scratching him. He heard something fly through the air and heard Poison Ivy shriek. He peeked out from behind cover and the Batman lowering his arm. The bat-like man glanced in Leon's direction. Leon nodded in reply before returning Ivy's fire with bullets. The Batman dashed out of cover and towards the woman. She ducked his charge and raced into the back room. Leon and Batman followed; Leon reloading as he ran.
Inside the back room was a jungle. The air was uncomfortably humid making Leon consider shedding his coat. Leaves whispered in a hidden wind and their suspect had disappeared. Something in the air tickled Leon's throat and he felt his mind become fuzzy as he coughed.
"What?" he coughed. "Is going on?"
"Don't inhale!" the Batman coughed. His warning came too late as Leon felt his limbs become numb. He fell to his knees and heard Poison Ivy laugh. Leon glanced in the Batman's direction and tried to shout out a warning. A vine whipped out of nowhere and hit the Batman on the cheek. The man pulled back with a groan as he too fell to his knees.
Leon's vision was becoming blurry as well as he felt his body fall to the floor. He saw the woman sitting on what looked to be a throne made of a giant plant leaf before the world went black.
"Believe me Batman. Even if you escape my traps, I'm the least of your worries." The eco-terrorist leaned seductively over her plant throne. "Talia's back in town but, of course, you already knew that," she added with a laugh.
The air was easier to breath close to the floor Batman found as his strength slowly gave out. The cut on his cheek was bleeding but at least he didn't have to worry about Kennedy suffocating to death in the toxic air. From what he could tell the air was free of dangerous plant spores. Poison Ivy was probably waiting for him to pass out before she placed him in a death trap or fed him to her plants. He could feel his eyes getting heavier. Unfortunately, it appeared Poison Ivy had also noticed.
"Aw. Getting sleepy, Batman? Don't worry," she cooed as she stepped down from her throne. "This is one night you'll never have to wake up from."
"Where's… Talia?" he managed to gasp.
He could see her green boots as she stood in front of him. "Don't know. The last I heard of her was when she gave me the vial. It's done wonders for my plants. Wouldn't you agree?"
Batman clenched his teeth. The small cut on his cheek burning. She injected the virus into her plants? Did she realize the danger she was in as well? "Virus is… poison."
Poison Ivy laughed. "Of course it is. Why else would I use it? Soon Gotham will feel the wrath of my babies. They will know what it is like to be devoured."
"Stop… you."
He could tell from her voice, Poison Ivy was frowning. "You can't honestly expect to escape this time. You can barely keep your eyes open, let alone stop my babies from devouring you." Her boots moved away from him and towards the unmoving officer. "But I guess I'll give you a chance."
Vines wrapped around Batman and raised him so that he could look Poison Ivy in the eye. However, she wasn't looking at him. She was watching a large Venus Fly Trap whose mouth was large enough to swallow a man sprout from the ground. Its outer body was green but inside its mouth was red. Drool poured from its mouth and hissed when it hit the ground.
A cruel smile marred Poison Ivy's face. "I'll let my baby eat the officer first. It wouldn't do for my baby to die from hunger while it tried to wrestle your meat from under that suit."
Batman forced his eyes to open wider as the Venus Fly— or rather Venus Man Trap shrieked. Vines reached towards the unconscious officer. Batman willed strength into his arm to reach for his utility belt. The vines were wrapping around Kennedy's limbs and pulling him towards the open jaws. Only the Batman's fingers twitched. The jaws opened.
A series of pops were heard. The plant jerked back and shrieked. The vines released Kennedy and the man collapsed in a heap on the ground. At the same time a window shattered. Batman heard Poison Ivy shout in rage and the vines that held him allowed him released their grip. From his place on the ground, Batman saw the small holes in the Venus Man Trap as it collapsed to the ground.
"Sorry," the woman said. "But I need them alive for now."
"Who do you think you are?" Poison Ivy was shouting.
"Barbara Hull."
Batman struggled to raise his head but the action was beyond him. As it was, his eyes were closing again. They were barely slits when he saw a pair of black woman's shoes stand beside Kennedy's body.
With the last of his strength, Batman called out a warning about the toxins in the air. He passed out before he could be sure the woman understood. He could only hope as the darkness swallowed him.
"Leon? Leon, you've got to wake up!"
The voice reached him the same time he became aware of a sensation on his face. He frowned and tried to lift a hand to swat away whatever was touching him. His attempt failed when he found his arm too heavy to lift or maybe it was too numb. The sensation became a tapping of a hand on his cheek. He tried to turn his face away but another hand held his head in place. When he opened one of his eyes, the world was dark. The tapping stopped. A figure was leaning over him. He started to close his eye again when the tapping returned. He opened both eyes. Slowly the world came into focus. A woman with her hair pulled back in a ponytail was leaning over him and he was looking into familiar blue eyes.
"Claire?" he asked. His voice felt hoarse and his mouth dry.
The brown haired woman smiled and nodded. She placed an arm around his shoulders and helped him move into a sitting position. It was difficult. His movements were slow and his limbs felt heavy although they were no longer numb. If not for the wall supporting his back, he probably could have fallen over again. As it was, the action was enough to cause his eyes to start to close again. Through force of will, he kept them open and looked around himself.
The green house was a nightmare. Plants were black and deformed and covered in water, suggesting there had been a fire before the automatic sprinklers turned on. Tables were overturned and Leon spotted more than one bullet hole in various walls, trees, or tables. Crossbow arrows were also littered in the area. Windows were broken and outside red and blue lights flashed.
"You forgot to turn off your lights," Claire commented.
Leon tried to nod but it was a trial to raise his head again. Speaking, he discovered, was easier. "What are you doing here?"
He watched as Claire's eyes scanned the surrounding area. A frown was on her face. "I was in the area and decided to check on you. When I arrived at the station to talk to you, one of the officers said you were trying to commit suicide for the fourth time."
Leon frowned. He had a pretty good idea which officer had said that. "So you fought Pamela Isley?"
"You mean her?" Claire pointed to their left. Lying in a puddle of blood was Isley. A figure in black was kneeling by her and bandaging her wounds from the looks of things. "When I arrived the sprinklers had just turned on and she was lying there."
The Batman stood and walked over to them. A scowl was on his face or at least it appeared that way. Leon couldn't tell what his eyes looked like due to the mask. "Did you see another woman entering or leaving the building?" the man asked Claire.
Claire shook her head. "When I arrived I only saw you two."
"She said her name was Barbara Hull," Batman continued. "Does that mean anything to you?"
Leon frowned. Although the question seemed to be aimed at Claire, Batman was watching Leon. Claire answered in the negative and Leon echoed her answer. He didn't have a clue who the woman may be.
Batman nodded and returned to Isley's side. He lifted her onto his shoulder easily. The toxins didn't appear to be affecting the other man half as much as they affected Leon. Maybe the Batman had developed some form of immunity?
"I'll take Poison Ivy to the police station." Batman focused his attention onto Claire. "Take Officer Kennedy home and make sure he stays there."
Before Leon could say anything, Batman had disappeared with Isley. An annoyed smile was on Claire's face as she stared at the place Batman had been. "I can see why you prefer Gotham over Raccoon City. At least the bad guys aren't the only strange ones."
Leon only shook his head. He knew better than anyone that anything he said was going to be ignored. With a sigh, she helped him to his feet. He swayed for a moment with a hand on the wall to steady himself. He started to take a step and nearly collapsed to the ground. Thankfully, Claire caught him. With an arm to steady him, they slowly made their way out of the green house and towards the police cruiser. As Claire shifted the gears, Leon couldn't help but wonder just how much of a lecture he was going to get from Flynn and Walker about letting a civilian drive a police vehicle. Before he could dwell on it too long, he felt his eyes getting heavy. This time, Claire let him drift into darkness.
Requesting Feedback on:
-The woman's name. I know it is really obvious who it is but at the end of RE3, she said she was no longer her. I want to know if people think the name is possible for her to take. And if you didn't know but know now… sorry about that.
Disclaimer: I am not in any way connected to DC or Capcom.
Rule of Thumb: If you do not recognize the name from either the Batman fiction or Resident Evil fiction, I probably created them. Please do not use without written permission.
A/N: Sorry about the shorter chapter. I'm starting to lose interest in this fic and I'm guessing it is showing. The next chapter will probably be the last but we'll see. Thanks for reading.
-D101